Harry Potter's Years at Myrddin School of Magic
by Lady Sandrilene
Summary: At age of 11, Harry is rescued from an abusive life at the Dursleys. As Dumbledore refuses to do anything, Harry chooses to attend Myrddin School instead of Hogwarts, and the Headmistress there allows him to live at the school. Please read and review!
1. Rescued from the Dursleys

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. The wonderful author J.K. Rowling is. If I did own HP, Sirius and Dumbledore would be alive, and certain people who died in Deathly Hallows wouldn't have died. If I had my way, it would have been only Death Eaters and nameless or very minor, unimportant people on the Lightside who died. So please don't sue.

Summary: I was seized by a plot bunny a couple of days ago, where the Dursleys are abusive to Harry and he gets rescued and attends a different school of magic. Myrddin is the Welsh form of the name "Merlin" and I thought it would sound better to call the school "Myrddin Academy" rather than "Merlin Academy. In this fic, Dumbledore is very manipulative, and readers will likely end up hating him. I orginally wanted to make him good, but with a tendancy to manipulate things and blind himself to things for the greater good, but as the fic progressed, he ended up more like Umbridge. This chapter contains minor **SPOILERS** for book seven. Oh, and the other chapters won't be as long as this one.

Harry huddled on his matress in the cupboard under the stairs, doing his best not to cry. He had just been beaten with a belt by his uncle for the incident at the zoo. He still couldn't understand how the glass on the snake exhibit had vanished, but it had and Uncle Vernon believed that he had something to do with it. It didn't help matters that Dudley's friend Piers had said, "Harry was talking to it, weren't you, Harry?" As a result, upon reaching home, Uncle Vernon had hit Harry with a belt, then locked him in the cupboard, saying, "You'll be in there for a month except for school and chores. And don't expect any meals, either!"

Of course, Harry really wasn't going to get no meals at all. He would still have lunch, at least during the school week, because his teacher would get suspicious if he turned up at school without lunch. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon might keep him from school a couple of days on pretense of illness and lock him the cupboard, but they wouldn't go beyond that. He couldn't miss too much school, or the authorities would come looking.

Harry wiped away a tear that had fallen and muttered, "Why is it that my aunt and uncle are somewhat decent in public, but then treat me like a slave at home?" He really could not understand it. They loved and spoiled their son Dudley, but treated Harry lower than dirt. If he displeased his uncle in some way, he could expect to be yelled at and hit with a belt, at the very least. Sometimes there would be added being locked in his cupboard when he didn't have school or chores, being given extra work, and/or going without meals. His aunt rarely hit him, except for slapping him when she was really angry, and yelled at him the rest of the time. Dudley bullied him, at school and at home, and called him "freak" and "waste of space" like his parents did.

Harry suddenly thought back to all the times that he had really angered Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. First there was the time when he was six. Aunt Petunia, tired of how messy his hair was, and how it never seemed to change despite many haircuts, had taken a pair of sissors and cut off most of his hair. He had been practically bald, except for his bangs, which she'd left to hide the lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead. He had expected the other first-graders to laugh at his haircut, but it had grown back the next day. Aunt Petunia had yelled, Uncle Vernon had hit him with a belt, and he'd been locked up in his cupboard for the day. He had also been given extra chores for the rest of the week and had to go without dinner for a week.

Then in second grade, Harry had brought home a note from the school nurse, saying he needed glasses. Of course, the Dursleys had to buy the glasses, so as to not arouse the suspicion of the nurse and his teacher. However, the glasses had been the cheapest pair in the shop, costing ten pounds. Uncle Vernon had been angry over the expense and shouted at Harry for several minutes. Then Harry had been beaten with the belt every day for a week, and had to do extra chores and go without meals (except for lunch) for a month to pay for the glasses.

The third and last major incident had occured last year in fourth grade. Harry had been running away from Dudley and his gang, and somehow ended up on the kitchen roof. He had intended to jump behind the trash cans behind the kitchen. Harry supposed that the wind must have carried him in mid-jump, considering how small and light he was. He had to take home an angry note from the headmistress saying he had been climbing the school buldings. He'd been given two weeks in the cupboard, a beating, and no meals for a week.

Harry stared at the dark light in his cupboard and whispered, "I wish I could be rescued. I wish that someone will come and take me away from the Dursleys, or that one or both of my parents come back to life. If you exist, God, please grant my wish." Recalling what he had learned in class about the Greek and Norse gods, he added, "And if it's Hera and Odin and the rest who exist, then please grant my wish." He wasn't really sure about the existance of the Greek or Norse gods, but he asked them to grant his request just in case.

Suddenly a bright light flared for a second and Harry seemed to feel a heavy and powerful Presence about him. There was no voice, but he sensed that Someone, prehaps God, had heard his wish and seemed willing to find a way to grant it. Then the Presence disappeared and Harry lay on his matress, feeling comforted, which hadn't happened the previous times he made the same wish. Then again, he hadn't been asking any Higher Power or Being to grant his wish before.

Toward the end of July, Harry was left with batty, cat-loving neighbor Mrs. Figg while his aunt and uncle took Dudley to London to get his Smeltings uniform. Harry enjoyed it, for Mrs. Figg was nice to him, but not too nice. He had the sense not to reveal how nice she was, for his aunt and uncle wouldn't have let him return there. He watched some television, was given a delicious lunch, and for a change, didn't have to look at the photographs or hear the stories of all the cats Mrs. Figg had owned. That was mainly because Mrs. Figg had broken her leg tripping over one of her cats and wasn't as fond of them as usual.

The next day, Harry went to get the mail and to his utter shock, found a letter addressed to him. He stared at the letter in shock, certain that this was a mistake. He had no friends, no other relatives - he didn't belong to the library so he'd never even got rude notes asking for books back. Yet, here it was, a letter, addressed so plainly there could be no mistake:

_Mr H. Potter  
The Cupboard under the Stairs  
4 Privet Drive  
Little Whinging  
Surrey_

The envelope was thick and heavy, made of yellowish parchment, and the address was written in emerald-green ink. There was no stamp. Turning the envelope over, his hand trembling, Harry saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger and a snake surrounding a large letter 'H'.

He was slowly unopening it at the kitchen table when Dudley spotted him and shouted, "DAD! The freak's got a letter!"

Uncle Vernon snatched the letter, sneering, "Who'd be writing to you?" He shook the letter open with one hand and glanced at it. His face went from red to green faster than a set of traffic lights. And it didn't stop there. Within seconds it was the greyish white of old porridge. "P-P-Petunia!" he gasped.

Dudley tried to grab the letter to read it, but Uncle Vernon held it high out of his reach. Aunt Petunia took it curiously and read the first line. For a moment it looked as though she might faint. She clutched her throat and made a choking noise. "Vernon! Oh my goodness - Vernon!"

They stared at each other, seeming to have forgotten that Harry and Dudley were still in the room. Dudley wasn't used to being ignored. He gave his father a sharp tap on the head with his Smeltings stick. "I want to read that letter," he said loudly.

"I want to read it," said Harry furiously, "as it's mine."

"YOU WILL NOT!" yelled Uncle Vernon. Then in a slightly calmer tone, "The letter was addressed to you by mistake! Now go to your cupboard, boy!"

Harry, feeling angry, left the kitchen and went inside his cupboard. He had been wondering if the mysterious letter would have anything to do with his wish of escaping the Dursleys being granted, but now he had no idea.

Several minutes later, the doorbell rang and Aunt Petunia went to answer it. Harry opened the cupboard door a crack and saw a tall woman with graying dark blonde hair, square spectacles, and dressed in a navy blue skirt, white blouse, and blue jacket at the door. She looked severe, and very angry, but there was still a hint of kindness around her. "This is Number Four, Privet Drive, residence of a Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Dursley, correct?"

Aunt Petunia nodded. "Yes, I'm Petunia Dursley."

"I am Rhiannon McIntyre," said the woman. "I am the Headmistress of the Myrddin Academy of Magic." She pushed into the hallway and headed for Harry's cupboard. Aunt Petunia stared at her, openmouthed.

Madam McIntyre flung open the door and stared at Harry, who had fallen back on his mattress. "So, the address was correct." She whirled around and looked daggers at Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon, who had come out the kitchen. "How dare you treat your nephew like this? When I saw the address for Harry Potter, I realized that something was amiss and came personally to deal with it, rather than assigning it to one of my staff. Lily and James Potter would turn over in their graves if they knew that their son was sleeping in a cupboard and is no doubt being abused as well. In fact, seeing as they're in Heaven or someplace similar, I wouldn't be surprised if they do know about this. They're probably wishing they could come back to life and hex you, or could return as ghost and haunt you."

"What-?" asked Uncle Vernon weakly. "Who are you?"

"I am Rhiannon McIntyre, headmistress of Myrddin Academy of Magic. You don't know me, but I'm sure your wife has heard of the school. After all, her sister was given an acceptance letter to the school, though Lily chose to attend Hogwarts instead due to some influence by a friend of hers who was wizard and was planning on attending Hogwarts."

Aunt Petunia looked very pale, but nodded slowly when her husband looked at her. Harry stood in the doorway, looking and feeling puzzled. Academy of Magic? His mother had been accepted there but attended some place called Hogwarts? She had a friend who had been a wizard, despite the fact that magic didn't exist, other than in books and sleight-of-hand tricks?

The woman turned to Harry and said, "Please call me Professor McIntyre. Now gather your things and come with me. I am taking you away from the Dursleys." She turned back to the Dursleys and snapped, "If you try to stop me, I will hex you and then report the child abuse that has been going on to the police."

Harry's few things were quickly gathered and packed in a paper sack. He then followed Professor McIntyre out the door and to her car. He wasn't exactly certain what was going on, but he guessed that his wish had been granted and he was being rescued.

After they had driven away from Privet Drive, he was handed a white envelope with the same address that had been on the other letter. The seal was merely a white sticker, with a pair of crossed wands and a book over it that had a sapphire and ruby on one page and a diamond and emerald on the other. In tiny print around the edge of the sticker was "Myrddin School of Magic".

Harry opened the envelope, unfolded the letter inside, and read:

Myrddin Academy of Magic

Headmistress: Rhiannon Aileen McIntyre Deputy Headmistress: Kathleen Branwen O'Leary

Dear Mr. Harry James Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Myrddin Acadeny of Magic. Enclosed is a list of all necessary books and equipment. If you wish to attend, please send a return reply by owl no later than the 31st of July. The school term begins on the first of September. The exact location of the school will be revealed to you then, and the necessary transportation will be arranged.

Sincerely yours,

Rhiannon McIntyre and Kathleen O'Leary

Harry stared at the letter in shock, then looked at Professor McIntyre. "Is this a joke, Professor? Magic isn't supposed to exist. And even if it did, I can't be a wizard, can I?" Then he cringed, as the Dursleys hadn't liked him to ask questions.

Professor McIntyre, glanced at him, then turned her attention back to the road. If she had seen the cringe, she did not comment at all. She answered calmly, "No, this isn't a joke, Harry. You really are a wizard, and you've been accepted to my school."

Harry then remembered the odd things that occured and nodded slowly. "Was the letter I got earlier this morning from your school? Oh, wait, it can't be, because the seal was different. I wish Uncle Vernon hadn't taken it from me."

"I believe that the letter you received earlier was from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It's somewhere in Scotland, and many magical people in Britain attend there if they don't choose to attend Myrddin School or get an acceptance letter. Hogwarts is one of the best schools of magic, along with Myrddin Academy. Your parents attended Hogwarts, though they both received acceptance letters to my school as well."

As his parents had attended Hogwarts, Harry was more inclined to attend Hogwarts, despite the fact that the Headmistress of Myrddin School had rescued him from the Dursleys. However, he still had some questions he wanted answered before he made up his mind about which school to attend. "Er, Professor McIntyre, does that mean that my aunt and uncle knew about magic?"

"Of course," snapped Professor McIntyre. "Your aunt was disappointed over not having magic and wrote a letter to Mryddin School to ask if she could attend. I suspect she wrote one to Hogwarts as well. I suppose when she found out she couldn't attend, she decided to hate magic and consider your mother a freak. Which is most likely why she was so horrid to you. I can't believe Albus Dumbledore was so blind as to think that you would be best off at the Dursleys."

"Who is Albus Dumbledore?" asked Harry.

"Oh, he's the Headmaster of Hogwarts. He was the one who left you at the Dursleys." Harry suddenly felt that prehaps Hogwarts wasn't such a good choice after all. "Not that Dumbledore is a bad person," said Professor McIntyre. "He is firmly on the good side. However, he can be somewhat manipulative and can blind himself to certain things and only looks at the greater good. Since your mother sacrificed herself to save you, he probably did some spells so that you would be protected at the Dursleys because your aunt shared your mother's blood. He obviously didn't realize that you wouldn't be protected from your relatives."

"My mother sacrificed herself to save me?" asked Harry, looking puzzled. "Does that mean she covered me with her body so I would survive the car crash?"

"Car crash?" demanded Professor McIntyre. "What do you mean by a car crash? Your parents didn't die that way."

"That's what Aunt Petunia said before slapping me for asking questions when I asked her how I got my scar," responded Harry.

"Let me tell you the truth. First, there was a very evil wizard who went by the name of Lord Voldemort. Now, in the wizarding world, many people are afraid to say his name, so they just refer to him as 'You-Know-Who' or 'He-who-must-not-be-named'. Or as the 'Dark Lord' among Voldemort's followers, who are called Death Eaters. Now, your parents were fighting against Voldemort, and on Halloween night in 1981, when you were just a year old, he appeared at Godric's Hollow, the town where your parents were hiding. Your father, James, tried to fight back, but he was killed. Then Voldemort went after you, Lily, your mother, refused to let that happen, so Voldemort killed her. Your mother's sacrifice saved you in that when he tried to use the Killing Curse on you, it bounded off and hit him. Many believe that Voldemort is dead, but some, including me, believe that he merely lost his powers and much of his body and so fled. Because you were the one to defeat Voldemort, and is the only person to survive the Killing Curse, you are famous in the wizarding world, and are known as the 'Boy-who-lived'."

Harry's mouth fell open. "I'm famous? Just because an evil wizard tried to kill me and couldn't?"

"Well, yes," replied Professor McIntyre. "And because you defeated him, and you were only a baby then. A very smart baby, but still a baby. I didn't know your parents very well, but one of your parents' friends is a teacher at Myrddin Academy, and said that at the age of one, you could already fly on a toy broomstick and say several words, and not just 'mama' and 'dada'. You called your godfather 'Unca Pa'foot', Padfoot being his nickname from school, and your father's other friend 'Unca Mooey', as Moony was his nickname."

"I have a godfather?" asked Harry. "Then I should be living with him, Professor McIntyre."

"Your godfather was accused of being a supporter of Voldemort and the one who betrayed where your parents were hiding," explained Professor McIntyre. "I personally think he was framed. Another friend of your parents, Peter Pettigrew, confronted Sirius Black, and supposedly was blasted into tiny pieces by Sirius. The biggest part of Pettigrew that was found was a finger. Twelve Muggles were killed as well." She glanced at Harry and seeing his confused look, she clarifed, "A Muggle is what witches and wizards call non-magical people. Anyway, because of what Sirius supposedly did, he was arrested and sent to Azkaban, the wizarding prison, without a trial. That is why you aren't living with him, though I believe your parents' will named him guardian."

"Well, if he's prison, that explains it," said Harry. "But I still shouldn't have been sent to live with the Dursleys. I bet my parents wouldn't have wanted that." Then he cringed again.

"Harry, I'm not going to hurt you," said Professor McIntyre patiently. "The way the Dursleys treated you was wrong. Once I take you to see Dumbledore and explain what has been going on, he'll immediately make plans to make sure you never have to go back there again. And then you can decide whether you want to attend Hogwards or Mryddin School of Magic."

"Why was Voldemort evil?" asked Harry. Professor McIntyre then went on to explain about purebloods, halfbloods, and Muggleborns, and how some purebloods thought Muggles were lower than dirt and Muggleborns were little better. She added that Voldemort thought like that and had gathered many purebloods who thought the same to him, and it resulted in a war. Harry had learned a little bit about World War Two and Nazi Germany in school, and realized that it was similar.

Once Harry fully understood the matter, Professor McIntyre questioned him about his life at the Dursleys and learned the full extent of abuse. She had suspected the abuse, since Harry was living in a cupboard, but hadn't realized that it had gone so far. By the time Harry was done, she was livid with anger, but took care not to show it to Harry.

Finally they arrived in London and she parked outside the Leaky Cauldron. She pointed out the pub to Harry, who noticed that nobody else seemed to see it, and led him inside. The barkeeper grinned upon seeing Professor McIntyre and said, "Hello, Professor McIntyre. Are you wanting lunch? Or going to Diagon Alley?"

"No thank you, Tom," she replied. "I need to use your fireplace, please." He nodded and gestured behind him.

She led Harry over to the fireplace and explained the Floo Network and how to travel by Floo powder. She concluded with, "We are going to stop at Hogwarts to see Dumbledore. So throw a pinch of Floo powder in the fire, say, 'Dumbledore's office, Hogwarts,' and step inside." Seeing Harry's nervous and uncertain look, she added, "I'll go with you. The fireplace is big enough for both of us."

They did so and a few second later, tumbled out the fireplace in Dumbledore's office. Harry picked himself up and stared around the office. Professor McIntyre brushed the soot off his clothes, then off hers. "What a pleasant surprise," said Dumbledore pleasantly. Harry turned to stare at him. "Rhia, I didn't expect you to visit. And bringing Harry Potter with you. Lemon drop?"

Harry accepted and popped a golden sweet in his mouth, but Professor McIntyre refused. "I have some things to discuss with you, Albus. You apparently made a very huge mistake when you left Harry with his aunt and uncle." She went on to describe exactly how the Dursleys had been treating Harry, from all that he had told her.

When she finished, Dumbledore said calmly, "It is a pity that his relatives were less than kind to Harry, but what do you expect me to do, Rhia? He can't live with his godfather, as Sirius Black is in Azkaban. And with the wards on the Dursley home, that is the safest place for him besides Hogwarts. I'm afraid Harry will have to remain at the Dursleys, during the summer holidays at least, and I will warn the Dursleys that they are to treat nephew decently."

"Excuse me?" said Professor McIntyre icily. "I told Harry that he never had to go back with his abusive relatives again! Now you're saying he has to go back during the summer holidays! And if you think the Dursleys will heed your warning and be nice to Harry, short of having their memories modifed or being put on the Imperious Curse, you are greatly mistaken."

Harry's eyes widened and he clutched Professor McIntyre's arm. "Please don't send me back to my aunt and uncle," he begged.

"Don't worry, Harry," said Professor McIntyre soothingly. "I have no intention of that happening."

"Rhia, you know as well as I that Voldemort isn't really gone," said Dumbledore. "He will return someday. Furthermore, there are Death Eaters that escaped being arrested. Harry is safest at his relatives when he won't be at Hogwarts."

"Do you honestly think I'll let Harry attend Hogwarts?" she demanded. "Or that Harry will even be willing to attend after you've just said he has to stay with his relatives? He'll want to attend Myrddin Academy of Magic now. And I will see to it that he can live at the school. Several of my teachers are married with families, so Harry would be able to live there."

"Myrddin Academy won't be as safe as Hogwarts, Rhia," said Dumbledore.

"Actually, it's safer, seeing as most of the wizarding population of Britain doesn't know where the exact location is like they do with Hogwarts!" snapped Professor McIntyre. "Other than the staff, those that know the location, like the students, can't tell anybody else that doesn't know without it sounding like gibberish!"

"I want to attend Myrddin School of Magic," said Harry timidly. "It sounds nicer and safer, and Professor McIntyre says a friend of my parents' is a teacher there."

"See?" asked Professor McIntyre. "Harry wants to attend my school, not Hogwarts! You can't stop him!"

"Harry Potter won't be attending Myrddin Academy," said Dumbledore firmly. "He will attend Hogwarts, and during the summers, he will return to live at the Dursleys. I will make sure of that. Now, so you and Harry won't object-" He reached for his wand, but Rhia was faster.

"If you think to Obliviate Harry and me, or put us under the Imperious Curse so we'll obey you, think again," she snapped, her wand pointed at Dumbledore. "I thought you were a reasonable and good wizard, but you've just proved to be a meddling old fool who wants to manipulate things into happening your way! You'll likely use Harry and mold him so that he can go fight and defeat Voldemort for you! I know what the prophecy says, but I have no intention of using Harry as a weapon! It's up to him to decide what to do about Voldemort. No wonder Minerva McGonagall resigned and came to Myrddin Academy when she heard about the Transfiguration opening there."

"So that's where Minerva went?" asked Dumbledore, looking shocked. "She never told me, Rhia."

"Why would she?" inquired Rhia acidly. "She was extremely annoyed at your leaving Harry with the Dursleys when she had told you that they were the worst sort of Muggles and that it was mistake to leave Harry there. You wouldn't listen, and that incident made her lose faith in you. She stopped being loyal to you, and when she found out two years later that I was hiring a new Transfiguration teacher, she resigned her post at Hogwarts and applied. I hired her and she's been teaching at Myrddin Academy since. Your actions also alienated Severus Snape, you know. You couldn't save Lily, his best friend before he accidentally did something that drove a rift between them. He then decided that you were a meddler, and decided to transfer his loyalties to me. He applied for the open Potions post, though he would have preferred the Defense Against Dark Arts one, and I hired him. And he was even more annoyed with you this morning."

"Excuse me?" asked Dumbledore, blinking. He looked very shocked, and there was no twinkle in his eye.

"Before I left to collect Harry, I held a staff meeting," explained Rhia. "The entire staff is aware that the address for Harry includes 'Cupboard under the stairs.' Needless to say, they are all shocked that Harry doesn't have a proper room, and are suspecting that the Dursleys might have abused Harry in other ways as well. Severus may not have been any friend of James Potter, but he was friends with Lily, and does not like the fact that her son might have been abused. Any animosity he might have felt toward Harry for being James' son is gone, and right now, he and the rest of the staff are very annoyed with you."

Dumbledore looked even more shocked, and made a feeble protest. Rhia ignored him, and took Harry's hand and Flooed out of his office before he could react and try to stop them. A few seconds later, they tumbled out the fireplace in the staff room. The entire of the staff were gathered there, for they were curious to find out what happened with Harry. Professor McIntyre introduced the staff to Harry, then informed them that Harry had been abused. They all looked horrified and shocked that the saviour of the wizarding world could have been treated like that, and Hagrid, the Care of Magical Creatures teacher, looked ready to leave then and there and tear Dumbledore limb from limb for the mistake he made in leaving Harry at the Dursleys.

Professor McIntyre calmed everyone down, and had the school Healer, Madam O'Malley, check on Harry and tend to his hurts. Professor Snape left with them for the Hospital Wing, for he had to provide some healing and nutrient potions. The rest of staff went about their business, but they were still horrified over how Harry had been treated, and made at Dumbledore for making such a mistake.

The staff members are: Charms, Deputy Head, and Head of Sapphire House- Kathleen O'Leary, Tranfiguration and head of Ruby House- Minerva McGonagall, Potions and Head of Emerald House- Severus Snape, Herbology and Head of Diamond House- Haruna Yamatato-Patil, Defense Against Dark Arts- Remus Lupin, History of Magic- Eoin McIntyre (Rhia's husband) Astronomy- Lyra Anthony, Divination- Selene Lovegood, Arithmacy- Shang-Yun Chueng, Muggle Studies- Arthur Weasley, Ancient Runes- Amira Farohoud, Care of Magical Creatures- Rubeus Hagrid, School Healer- Bridget O'Malley, Librarians- Xenophilius Lovegood and Ling Tian Cheung (wife of Arithmacy teacher), caretakers- Leah and David Sternberg, Christian chaplain- Sean O'Malley, rabbi- David Sternberg, spiritual guide for Muslim students- Hakim Farohoud, spirtual guide for Hindu students- Adam Patil (husband of Herbology teacher)

When Hagrid was expelled from Hogwarts, the Headmaster of Myrddin Academy at the time contacted him. After much questioning, and a look at Aragog, he concluded that Hagrid was innocent. Aragog was given a home in a sectioned off area of the woods near Myrddin Academy, and Hagrid was allowed to complete his magical education there. Upon graduation, Hagrid remained at Myrddin Academy as assistant caretaker and Care of Magical Creatures teacher, and later took over the post when the teacher retired.


	2. At Myrddin School

Auhtor's note: The Patils teaching at the school aren't the parents of Padma and Parvati Patil. Patil simply happens to be a very common Indian last name, like Smith and Jones in English. Besides, in the books, the Patil twins are said to be of full Indian descent. The children of the Patils teaching at Myrddin Academy would be of mixed Japanese/Indain descent. Molly Weasley alsoworks at the school. She is the teacher for the children of staff that aren't old enough to attend the school yet. There are SPOILERS concerning Lily and Snape in the seventh book in this chapter.

Harry spent the rest of the day in the Hospital Wing. Remus Lupin and Severus Snape spent the afternoon with him. When Harry saw Remus, he said hesitantly, "Uncle Moony?"

Remus nodded, taken aback. "How did you know? Or did Rhia tell you?"

Harry shook his head. "Well, Professor McIntyre said a friend of my parents is a teacher here, and that when I was one,I called him Uncle Moony in baby-talk, but she didn't tell me his real name. When I met you, I felt that I'd seen you before and I realized who you must be."

Remus smiled. "So you still sort of remember me. Yes, you called me 'Uncle Moony' when you were a baby. And sometimes 'Uncle Remus.' Or rather, 'Unca Remmy'. You know, I would have liked to adopt you when your godfather couldn't, but I have, er, an illness that prevented me, by law, from doing so. Though I had any idea how your relatives were treating you, I would have taken you away from them regardless and had you brought up here. One of the teachers would have been happy to adopt you and I could help keep an eye on you."

Harry returned the smile, then turned to Snape. "Professor Snape, I heard Professor McIntyre tell Professor Dumbledore that you were friends with my mother until you did something that drove a rift between the two of you. And that you weren't friends with my father, and so wasn't going to like me, but you've changed your mind."

Snape looked at Harry, and with a loud sigh, nodded. He had been prepared to hate Harry for being James Potter's son, though of course he wouldn't be allowed to really show it. Harry looking like a minature copy of James made it easier. But now that Snape had seen Harry and heard about his life, things had changed. Harry had his mother Lily's emerald eyes, and they brought up feelings and memories of Lily that Snape hadn't thought about for a long time. Also, the abuse Harry had suffered under the hands of his Muggle relatives brought up memories Snape had of his Muggle father. Tobias Snape hadn't liked magic, and had been furious when he found out his wife was a witch. He had been even angrier upon discovering that his son was a wizard, and that had not resulted in a happy household. There were arguments and yelling between the parents, and Severus Snape had suffered emotional abuse from his father. He had been hit a few times, but not enough to be considered abuse, however.

Snape exchanged looks with Remus, then said to Harry, "It's true that your father and I didn't get along in school. He and his best friend Sirius Black liked to taunt and hex me at every opportunity. Of course, I always retaliated, and sometimes started things, so I suppose I have to take some responsibilty as well. Since I loathed your father, I was planning to hate you as well. Hearing about your life with your relatives changed things. And I was friends with your mother."

Harry, naturally, was curious about how Professor Snape and his mother stopped being friends, but he was too afraid to ask. While Professor Snape had spoken kindly to him, there was still something about him that was a bit scary. He wouldn't hurt anyone like Uncle Vernon did, but Harry could sense that he could be quite strict and yell at people at times.

Professor Lupin then proceeded to tell Harry about James, while Professor Snape told about Lily and the friendship he had with her. Remus looked very surprised. While he had been aware that Lily was kind to Snape, he hadn't known the extent of their friendship.

The next day, Harry was introduced to the children of the staff. Ron Weasley, Mariko Yamatato-Patel, (Mari) and Abigail Sternberg (Abby) were the same age as him. Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood, and Edward Cheung (Eddy) was a year younger. Brian O'Malley and Katherine Cheung (Kat) were a year older, and Fred and George Weasley, twins, were two years older. Percy Weasley and Jacob Sternberg were the oldest, being four years older than Harry. There were two other Weasleys, Charlie and Bill, but they had graduated and were working, Charlie at a dragon perserve in Romania, Bill as a curse-breaker in Egypt for Gringotts, the wizarding bank.

The youngest children were Alina and Hamid Farohoud, three and six respectively, Esther and Joseph Sternberg, four and seven respectively, and Devdan Yamatato-Patel, age eight.

Ron, Mari, and Abby took a liking to Harry, and decided to be his friends. Harry, who never had any friends before due to Dudley and his gang scaring off potential friends, found this a new and wonderful experience. The three had heard that Harry hadn't been treated well by his relatives, but were tactful enough not to mention it, and did their best to bring Harry out of his shell and help him be a normal kid.

By his birthday, Harry was beginning to act like a normal kid, but he still was a bit shy around others, and couldn't help cringing or flinching at times. The staff noticed and muttered angrily about the Dursleys, but took care not to show their anger around Harry or the other children.

In the meantime, Professor McIntyre had filed charges against the Dursleys for child abuse and an investigation was being made. The day before Harry's birthday, he had to leave the school for a few hours and talk with a very nice social worker, who also happened to be a Squib. The social worker had looked angry as Harry told her about the abuse he had suffered. Then she'd turned to Professor McIntyre and said, "Harry Potter may stay at your school for the time being. One of the teachers at Myrddin Academy was a friends of his parents, right? I'm sure I can help arrange things things so that in the Muggle world, he can be made guardian of Harry."

Harry had his first ever birthday party the next day, and received presents from the entire staff and their children. They ranged from books, robes, a snowy owl, sweets, joke items, a watch, crayon and marker pictures plus a toy truck from the youngest children, a hat, and a poster of the Chudley Cannons Quidditch team. Harry enjoyed the party and presents, and spent the evening deciding on a name for his owl. Finally he took Abby's suggestion and named her Hedwig.

Author's Note: What house should Harry be in, Emerald, Ruby, Diamond, or Sapphire? Please tell me in a PM or a review. They are similar to the houses at Hogwarts, except that graduates of Emerald House don't turn out evil. Diamond house is for loyal and hard-working people, but it is not considered a house for 'leftovers' like how some people regard Hufflepuff.


	3. Diagon Alley

The day after Harry's birthday was the trip to Diagon Alley. Everyone went, and the first years from Muggle families came along as well. In the Leaky Cauldron, Tom the barkeeper had noticed Harry and exclaimed, "Bless my soul! It can't be Harry Potter!" That had attracted the attention of the other people in the pub and they'd all come up to shake Harry's hand. Several introduced themselves. A woman named Doris Crockford had come back many times to shake his hand, and Harry recognized Dedalus Diggle as the man who had once bowed to him at a shop.

Finally Professor Snape said curtly, "Excuse me, but we need to go about our business. Please step aside." Doris Crockford gave Harry's hand one last shake and they managed to make their way to the back courtyard. It was empty except for a few trashcans and some weeds. Professor O'Leary tapped the wall three times with her wand, and the brick she had touched quivered - it wriggled - in the middle, a small hole appeared - it grew wider and wider - a second later they were facing an archway on to a cobbled street which twisted and turned out of sight.

A girl with bushy brown hair and rather large teeth that had been introduced as Hermione Granger gave an excited squeal. "This is wonderful!" She turned and gave Abby an excited smile.

The first stop was Gringotts, the wizarding bank. They reached a snowy-white building which towered over the other little shops. Standing beside its burnished bronze doors, wearing a uniform of scarlet and gold, was -

"Yes, that's a goblin," replied Professor McGonagall to Hermione's excited query.

The goblin was about a head shorter than Harry. He had a swarthy, clever face, a pointed beard and, Harry noticed, very long fingers and feet. He bowed as they walked inside. Now they were facing a second pair of doors, silver this time, with words engraved upon them:

_Enter, stranger, but take heed  
Of what awaits the sin of greed,  
For those who take, but do not earn,  
Must pay most dearly in their turn,  
So if you seek beneath our floors  
A treasure that was never yours,  
Thief, you have been warned, beware  
Of finding more than treasure there._

A pair of goblins bowed them through the silver doors and they were in a vast marble hall. About a hundred more goblins were sitting on high stools behind a long counter, scribbling in large ledgers, weighing coins on brass scales, examining precious stones through eyeglasses. There were too many doors to count leading off the hall, and yet more goblins were showing people in and out of these.

The parents of the Muggleborn students went to a counter to exchange pounds for wizarding money. Mr. McIntyre (History of Magic) and Madam O'Malley went with them to help. Professors McIntyre and Lupin took Harry to one of the free goblins and said, "Excuse me, but we need to take some money out of Mr. Harry Potter's vault. However, he doesn't have a key. I think Professor Dumbledore has it, but I have not asked him."

"That is not a problem," said the goblin. "I will have Griphook see to it."

The goblin Griphook came over and pricked Harry's index finger. A drop of blood was squeezed out onto a glass strip. After a minute, Griphook said, "You are Harry James Potter, son of James Potter and Lily Evans Potter. A new key will be made for you shortly. In the meantime, do you wish to know about your assets? That is, the money in your vaults and any property you own?"

Harry looked up at the two teachers, who nodded their assent, so he answered, "Yes, please, Mr. Griphook."

Griphook looked up at him, surprise on his face. "Well, you certainly are polite, Mr. Potter. Your assets stands as follows: In the Potter vault is approximately sixty million Galleons, forty million Sickles, and fifteen million Knuts. In your trust vault, it comes to twenty thousand Galleons, thirty thousand Sickles, and fifteen thousand Knuts. There would be more, but a stipend of sixty Galleons, or three hundred pounds, is paid out every month to your relatives to help pay for your upkeep. Al-"

"Stop those stipend payments immediately, Mr. Griphook," interrupted Professor McIntyre, furious. The Dursleys had been getting three hundred pounds a month to help with Harry's upkeep, yet they abused him and treated him like a house-elf.

Harry also felt angry and nodded in agreement. "Yes, please stop them, Mr. Griphook," he seconded.

"Mr. Potter, there is something you need to understand," said Griphook. "Professor Dumbledore has control of your assets at the moment, and he was the one who ordered the payments to your Muggle relatives. You may withdraw money from your trust fund, but you cannot countermand his orders unless you order to have all access to your assets cut off to him, or you turn of age."

Harry glanced at the two teachers, who nodded. He turned back to Griphook and said, "All right then, I order that Professor Dumbledore loses all access to my - uh - assets. I will take full charge of them."

Griphook nodded and wrote it down on a piece of parchment, then asked, "I take it that you also wish for the block on your mail to be removed? Albus Dumbledore had a spell set so that all your mail would be stopped until he took a look at them. Then such mail he deemed suitable would then be sent on to you."

"Yes, I would," said Harry. Behind him, Professor McIntyre frowned, and Professor Lupin made an angry growling noise.

Griphook added the second order on the parchment, then continued, "You also own a Black vault. It belonged to your grandmother, Dorea Black Potter, and was part of her dowry. It contains twice as much money as your trust vault. The final vault you own is the Peverell one. You are the last of the line of Ignotus Peverell, after all. The money in that vault comes to eighty million Galleons, seventy million sickles, and fifty million Knuts. Finally, you own five properties. There is the Potter mansion, the house your parents lived in in Godric's Hollow, though it's just the land now, a cottage outside Liverpool, a house outside of Paris in France, and a townhouse in London. The townhouse dates from a time when witches and wizards had social seasons and the Potter family lived there when they came up to attend them."

Finally he snapped his fingers, and a small pile of mail appeared. "Here is all the mail that was stopped and never sent on to you, Mr. Potter. Peruse them at your own leisure. The Potter and Peverell vaults also contain certain heirlooms and other items. A complete list of the items can be found in the vaults. Certain items marked on the lists may be removed, but you may not withdraw the rest nor any of the money except from you trust vault until you turn of age. That is according to your parents' will, Mr. Potter. That is the extent of your assets. Here is your key, Mr. Potter."

"Thank you, Mr. Griphook," said Harry politely, giving a small bow.

Griphook looked surprised again. "Your welcome. It was a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Potter." Harry heard him mutter, "If only all wizards could be as respectful as him. Only the ones that are associated with Myrddin Academy and a few others have been as polite."

"Come along, Harry," said Professor McIntyre. "We need to withdraw money from your trust vault to pay for your school supplies. Tomorrow or later on in the month we can return and you can look through your other vaults."

Harry's eyes widened when they reacher his vault and unlocked it. Inside were mounds of gold coins. Columns of silver. Heaps of little bronze coins. "The coins are gold Galleons, silver Sickles, and bronze Knuts," explained Professor Lupin. "Seventeen sickles to a Galleon, and twenty-nine Knuts to a Sickle." He helped Harry fill a bag, and then they went to join the others.

The first stop was Flourish and Blotts for the set books. Harry checked his booklist, then picked out the required books. He saw Abby pick up a couple of extra books for background reading, and Hermione did the same. The two girls were apparently bookish types and he saw them strike up a conversation.

Ron rolled his eyes when he saw Hermione and Abby chattering animatedly away and whispered to Harry, "Ugh, now we'll be seeing a great deal of Hermione now that Abby's being friends with her."

Harry shrugged. "Hermione doesn't seem to be that bad. She'd make a decent friend."

Ron nodded, but he didn't look convinced. "Let's go talk to the boys."

The Muggleborn boys were Justin Finch-Fletchy, Dean Thomas, and Terry Boot. They were very interested in the magical world and asked many questions, all of which Ron did his best to answer. Justin mentioned that his name had been down for Eton, but he preferred attending a magical school. Dean said he might not really be Muggleborn, for his father had disappeared when he was a baby, and his mother had been wondering if he had been a wizard ever since Dean had gotten the acceptance letter.

Next was Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Madam Malkin was a squat, smiling witch dressed all in mauve. She greeted Professor McIntyre, then looked over the students. "All for Myrddin School? All right, then." She beckoned to Terry Boot, who was first in line, and led him to the back of the shop to be fitted.

Finally everyone was fitted and had gotten their robes. The older students went off to buy their parchment and other writing supplies while the first-years went to get their cauldrons and potion supplies. Then they switched, and finally the first years went to get their wands.

The last shop was narrow and shabby. Peeling gold letters over the door read Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 BC. A single wand lay on a faded purple cushion in the dusty window. A tinkling bell rang somewhere in the depths of the shop as they stepped inside. It was a tiny place, empty for a single spindly chair. Harry felt strangely as though he'd entered a very strict library; he swallowed a lot of new questions which had just occurred to him and looked instead at the thousands of narrow boxes piled neatly right up to the ceiling. For some reason, the back of his neck prickled. The very dust and silence in here seemed to tingle with some secret magic.

Hermione and Abby, who had been talking ever since Flourish and Blotts, were now silent and stared around the shop. Justin and Terry looked nervous.

"Good afternoon," said a soft voice. Harry jumped, and so did the other students and their parents. The only ones who didn't jump were Professors McIntyre, Lupin, O'Leary, McGonagall, and Weasley, the teachers accompanying them.

An old man was standing before them, his wide, pale eyes shining like moons through the gloom of the shop. He greeted them, then turned to the teachers. He proceeded to name the wands they hand, and asked if they were still in good condition. The teachers nodded, then Mr. Ollivander turned to the students. Hermione was first, and she went through about fifteen wands before she was handed a vine wood wand, with a dragon heartstring core. Blue and gold sparks shot out of her wand and a delighted Mr. Ollivander pronounced it the perfect wand for her.

Next was Ron and his wand was willow, fourteen inches, with a unicorn hair core. After Abby, who's wand was elder, unicorn hair, twelve inches, and Mari, who's wand was beech, phoenix feather, ten and a half inches, it was Harry's turn.

"Ah yes," said Mr. Ollivander, nodding at Harry. "Yes, yes. I thought I'd be seeing you soon. Harry Potter." It wasn't a question. "You have your mother's eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wand. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wand for charm work."

Mr. Ollivander moved closer to Harry. Harry wished he would blink. Those silvery eyes were a bit creepy.

"Your father, on the other hand, favored a mahogany wand. Eleven inches. Pliable. A little more power and excellent for transfiguration. Well, I say your father favored it- it's really the wand that chooses the wizard, of course." Mr. Ollivander had come so close that he and Harry were almost nose to nose. Harry could see himself reflected in those misty eyes. "And that's where..."

Mr. Ollivander touched the lightning scar on Harry's forehead with a long, white finger.  
"I'm sorry to say that I sold the wand that did it," he said softly. "Thirteen and a half inches. Yew. Powerful wand, very powerful, and in the wrong hands... Well, if I'd known what that wand was going out in the world to do..."

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat and Mr. Ollivander quickly picked up the tape measure. "Which is your wand arm?"

"Er - well, I'm right-handed," said Harry.

"Hold out your arm. That's it." He measured Harry from shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, knee to armpit and round his head. Then Harry suddenly realized that the tape measure, which was measuring between his nostrils, was doing this on its own. Mr. Ollivander was flitting around the shelves, taking down boxes.

"That will do," he said, and the tape measure crumpled into a heap on the floor. "Right then, Mr. Potter. Try this one. Beechwood and dragon heartstring. Nine inches. Nice and flexible. Just take it and give it a wave."

Harry took the wand and (feeling foolish) waved it around a bit, but Mr. Ollivander took it out of his hand almost at once. Wands began piling up, and to save time, Dean began trying the wands that were discarded for Harry. After awhile, Dean found the perfect wand and Justin took over. He soon found the right wand as well. Harry must have tried almost every wand in the shop before the perfect wand chose him. It was holly, phoenix feather, eleven inches, and white and silver sparks shot out of his wand. Mr. Ollivander revealed that the brother of the wand had given Harry his scar.

Then Terry, Emily Spencer, Mandy Brocklehurst, and Sally-Anne Perks got their wands. As the wands were paid for, Professor O'Leary quickly explained about Voldemort and how he had given Harry the scar. The Muggleborn students stared at Harry in awe, and Sally-Anne exclaimed, "Wow! I can't believe you defeated an evil wizard like that!" A look of hero-worship appeared on her face.

Emily gave Sally-Anne an exasperated look and said, "It happened when Harry was a baby, so he doesn't remember it. And I very much doubt he'd appreciate having a big deal made of it. He certainly didn't seem to like all that fuss in the Leaky Cauldron. He kept flinching."

On the way back to the Leaky Cauldron, Emily whispered in Harry's ear, "I think I know the real reason you were flinching. You've been abused before, haven't you? I won't tell anyone."

Harry stopped and gave Emily a startled look. How had she figured that out? She gestured for Harry to keep walking and continued in a whisper, "I was once abused as well. My real father started drinking when I was six, and began yelling at my mum and hitting me when I got in the way. When I was eight, Mum finally had enough and divorced him."

Harry stared at her again. "I didn't realize that other children might have had to go through-"

"Hush!" hissed Emily. "You're talking too loud, Harry. Anyway, I have some idea of what you went through. I'm not going to tell anyone, except my mum, who'll keep it a secret. I do take it that you don't want it to become general knowledge? I'm sure the wizarding world would freak out if they found out their savior was abused by his relatives."

"They would," said Harry. "Yes, don't tell anyone except your mum, Emily. Well, the staff know, but they're not going to spread it around."

"Okay then, Harry," said Emily. "And you can call me Em." She left Harry and went back to her mother's side.

Back at Myrddin Academy, Harry put his purchases in his trunk, and settled down to look through his mail. There were several acceptance letters from magical schools around the world, and he wrote and sent brief replies saying that he had decided to attend Myrddin Academy and theorfore would not be coming to their schools. The rest of the mail was letters from witches and wizards congratulating him on his defeat of Voldemort and asking him about his life.

Those he set aside for Professor Lupin to help him to deal with. Then he had lunch and spent the afternoon looking through his schoolbooks.


	4. The Sorting

September the first arrived and the school term was about to begin. Harry sat in an empty classroom, a copy of _A History of Myrddin School of Magic_ in his lap. He was nervous, and wondered what house he would be in. Professor Lupin had told him about the houses at Hogwarts, and said the ones at Myrddin Academy were similar. He had added that many students considered Diamond House to be the best, as diamonds were the most valuable jewels among the four the houses were named after, as well as being the hardest natural substance in the world.

Professors McGonagall and McIntyre had told him that it didn't really matter what house he would be in, as they were all equally wonderful. Students succeeded no matter what house they were in, and no graduate of the school had ever turned out to follow the Dark Arts. Unlike at Hogwarts, there was very little house rivalry, and it was mostly friendly. Students mixed together regardless of houses, and you didn't have to sit with your house at all during meals except for the Welcoming and Closing Feasts.

Ron had said, "Harry, don't worry at all if we're in different houses. We'll still be friends." Harry had nodded, but still felt uncertain. He'd asked Ron what house he was likely to be in, but Ron had shrugged. "I wouldn't know. My parents were in Ruby house. Fred and George are in Ruby and Percy's in Emerald. And Bill was in Diamond and Charlie in Sapphire. I don't think I really want to be in the same house Percy is in, though. He's a great brother and I love him, but he can so annoying at times. You know Percy's serious much of the time, and he doesn't really like even bending the rules without permission or having a good reason to do so."

Harry had spoken to Abby and Mari then, but other than being assured of the fact that they'd still be his friends regardless of houses, he was still nervous. The only thing he was certain of was he wanted to be in the same house as Emily Spencer. After the trip to Diagon Alley, Emily had written to him. As she had also been abused before, she was able to give him some advice on how to deal with the past and learn to become a normal kid. Harry had replied, and through the letters, they had become friends. Being in the same house meant they would see each other more often, and they could become better friends.

Professor Snape poked his head in the door and snapped, "Potter! What are you doing in here?"

Harry jumped, startled, then stammered, "T-thinking about the S-Sorting, Professor Snape."

Professor Snape frowned. "You'll probably end up in Diamond House or Ruby House, Potter. Your father was reckless and mischievous, and Ruby House is the one for those students. Or you'll be perfect like your mother, and Diamond House is the best house for those kinds of students. I don't know if I want you in Emerald House and have you be one of my students. Your father would have a fit if I was your Head of House."

Harry had to grin at that. When he'd gone to examine the contents in his other vaults, one of the things he'd been allowed to remove was a journal written by the Marauders. Inside was full of pranks his father and his friends had played, or intended to play, and at least half of them had been designed to use on Professor Snape. It was obvious to him that James hadn't liked Professor Snape at all, and James would have a fit if he was Harry's Head of House.

The journal had also provided the explaination as to why Professor Snape was prepared to hate Harry. After all, if someone had played so many tricks and bullied him, he would have had misgivings about that person's child as well, and wouldn't be eager to like him or her. Of course, Harry would not hate that child, unless he or she turned out to be like the parent or was otherwise unpleasant, but he did understand what Professor Snape had gone through.

"Enough stewing over something you can't really control, Potter. I suggest you leave this room and spend some time with your friends." Harry nodded and slipped out of the room. After the first two weeks, Professor Snape had returned to his normal brusque manner, though he was still fairly nice to Harry, out of consideration for his past. He was also the teacher most of the students, outside of Emerald House, liked the least, because of his manner, but he wasn't intimidating or really mean.

At five o'clock, the foreign students arrived via Portkey, and a few minutes later, the British students, who had come by train, arrived as well. The older students went inside the dining hall, while the first years gathered in the room next to it. Harry, Ron, Abby, and Mari joined them. The first person Harry recognized was Dean Thomas. After greeting him and Justin, who was next to him, Harry turned and saw Sally-Ann Perks and Emily. He first greeted Sally-Ann, who gave a gushing reply. Emily rolled her eyes and took Harry aside.

"Hi, Harry. It's such a relief to get away from her," she muttered. "I was in the same compartment with her, and had to listen to her talk about you. Hermione and Mandy were excited also, but they were excited about Myrddin Academy, so I had no problem standing them. Hermione's quite nice, though she can be a little annoying with her know-it-all-ness. Mandy's okay, too."

"Well, I hope you don't end up in the same house as Sally-Ann," said Harry. "I don't think you'd want her for a roommate, Em."

"Oh, that'd be a nightmare," said Emily, shuddering.

Just then, Professor O'Leary came in. "Welcome, first years. You will shortly be brought into the dining hall, where the Sorting will begin. You will be sorted into Ruby, Diamond, Emerald, or Sapphire house. All houses are equally wonderful, and I expect you will all do well. Though you will share a common room with your house and have rooms in your house wing, you will be able to interact with the students of the other houses. Other than for tonight and the feast at the end of the year, you will not be required to sit with your house. You may sit with your friends, regardless of what house they are in. That does mean you are not have any house loyalty at all. If you misbehave, you will lose points for your house, while your triumphs will win points for your house, At the end of the year, the house with the most points will win the House Cup. So please keep that in mind, and also remember that at Myrddin Academy, inter-house unity is stressed as well."

She beckoned everyone to follow her out the room and they went to the Dining Hall. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles which were floating in mid-air over four long house tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. At the top of the Hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. Professor O'Leary led the first-years up here, so that they came to a halt in a line facing the other students, with the teachers behind them.

The hundreds of faces staring at them looked like pale lanterns in the flickering candlelight. Dotted here and there among the students, the twenty or so school ghosts shone misty silver. Harry felt very uncomfortable until Emily gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. On his other side, Ron patted his shoulder and whispered, "It won't be too bad, Harry."

Professor O'Leary picked up a scroll. "I will call you each up alphabetically. When you hear your name, please come forward and draw a slip of parchment from this hat. You will be sorted into the house that is written on the paper you drew. The hat will know what house you are best suited for, and will see to it that you draw the correct slip of parchment." She unrolled the scroll and said, "Abbott, Hannah!"

A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumbled out of line and reached into the hat. After several seconds, she withdrew a slip of parchment, which shouted for the entire Hall to hear, "Emerald House!" She dropped the parchment back into the hat and the table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down at the Emerald table. Harry saw the house ghost, Elana Merryweather, smile and wave cheerfully at her.

Next was Baum, Adelheid and she was withdrew a parchment that shouted, "Sapphire House!" The table next to the Emerald one burst into applause as Adelheid joined them. The house ghost, Lord Wesley, patted her on the arm.

Third was Bones, Susan, and she joined Hannah at the Emerald table. Then was Terry Boot and he joined Adelheid at the Sapphire table. Mandy Brocklehurst was the first Diamond House student. The table on the far left burst into applause. Lady Eleanor, the house ghost, smiled at Mandy. Charreau, Jean-Paul was the first to be sorted into Ruby House and the table next to the Diamond one clapped. Harry saw Fred and George Weasley catcalling and the house ghost, Sir Peter, did a flip in mid-air in his excitement.

The Sorting continued. Justin Finch-Fletchly was sorted into Diamond House, and Hermione Granger into Sapphire House. A boy named Neville Longbottom tripped on his way up to the hat. His hand moved about in the hat for a very long time before he withdrew a parchment that shouted out, "Diamond House!" He walked away still holding the parchment and Professor O'Leary had to call him back. Neville, face red, returned the parchment amid gales laughter.

Harry gave a start when he heard the name "Patil, Padma!" being called. He turned to Abby and asked in a whisper, "Could she be related to Mari?"

"I doubt it," replied Abby. "Patil is a very common Indian last name. And Mari would have told me if she had a cousin named Padma." Then Abby frowned. "Well, according to Muggle scientists or whatever, technically everyone is related, since we all descend from Adam and Eve, or whomever the first human couple were, depending on your religion or views. But the relation is microscopic. I'd be like your fiftieth cousin or something."

Harry suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. Whenever he asked Abby questions like that, she could be depended on to give answers similar to the one she just gave. She really didn't need to add that everyone was very distantly related to each other accoding to Muggles.

Padma was sorted into Diamond House. Next was her twin, Parvati, and she ended up in Ruby. After Sally-Ann (Emerald House), it was Harry's turn. As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall. "Potter, did she say?" "The Harry Potter?"

He nervously went up to the battered top hat and stuck his hand in. As he moved it around the four slips of parchment, he felt some one, or rather something, looking into his mind and judging him. Finally a slip of parchment slipped into his fingers and he withdrew it. "Diamond House!" it shouted. He looked down at it, then dropped it back into the hat and went to sit down at the Diamond table. He was so relieved that it was all over and he was in the house that his mother might have been if she'd attended Myrddin School that he hardly noticed that he was getting the loudest cheer yet.

Mandy grinned as he took the seat opposite her, and Neville Longbottom said, "Congratulations, Harry!" Lady Eleanor curtsied and smiled.

Harry turned his attention back to the Sorting. After Rivera, Carlos (Emerald House), it was Emily's turn. He crossed his fingers and prayed that she would be in Diamond House with him. After several second, she withdrew a parchment that shouted, "Diamond House!" Much relieved, he joined in the applause as Emily walked over and slipped into the seat next to him.

She tossed back her golden curls and her blue eyes sparkled with excitement and happiness as she said, "I'm glad to be in the same house as you, Harry." She then looked at Mandy and exchanged friendly smiles with her.

Abby was sorted into Sapphire House and Harry saw her sit down next to Hermione. Both girls girls looked happy and Harry remembered reading that Sapphire House was mainly for the clever and intelligent students.

Dean Thomas was sorted into Ruby House and Cornelia van Tramp was sorted into Emerald House. Then it was Ron's turn. Ron looked rather nervous as he went up and Harry prayed that he would be in Diamond, or at least not end up in Emerald. When Ron finally withdrew a parchment slip, it shouted, "Diamond House!"

Harry gave a sigh of relief as Ron took the seat next to him. The two then watched as Mari took her turn. She was sorted into Sapphire House, and looked took the seat on Abby's other side. Parvati Patil. Last was Blaise Zabini and he was sorted into Emerald House.

Harry was disappointed that Mari and Abby weren't in the same house as him, but he comforted himself with the fact that Ron and Emily were with him. He also reminded himself that Mandy, Padma, and Neville seemed very nice and that he could become friends with them.

Professor McInytre stood up. "Welcome back, returning students, and to the new first years, welcome to your first year at Myrddin School of Magic. I have to say now is: Let the banquet begin!" There were claps and cheers as she sat back down. Food then appeared on the tables and Harry began filling his plate.

After a few minutes, Padma leaned forward and asked, "Why weren't you on the train, Harry? I walked the entire length and didn't see you in any of the compartments."

"I live at the school," answered Harry.

"Really?" asked Padma. "Do you have relatives that teach here at the school or something?"

"No," responded Harry. "But a friend of my father's does. Professor Remus Lupin, the Defense Against Dark Arts teacher. And so does Professor Snape, a friend of my mother's. He's the Head of Emerald and teaches Potions."

"But unless they've become your guardians, that doesn't explain why you live at the school," said Padma, frowning.

Harry became uncomfortable with the way the conversation was going. Fortunately, Ron came to his rescue. "Harry was living with his Muggle relatives, but then the Headmistress discovered he was unhappy there when she brought him his acceptance letter. So she removed him from the Muggles and allowed him to live here at the school. Professor Lupin and my parents have taken over as his guardians. My dad's the Muggle Studies teacher, by the way."

"Oh," said Padma. She frowned and gave Harry a sharp look, but didn't say anything more.

"Harry, your relatives weren't treating you badly, were they?" asked Mandy. Emily dropped her fork and Padma gave Mandy a nudge.

Harry almost knocked over his goblet. He stared at Mandy, unsure of how to answer. He really didn't want to talk about his life at the Dursleys, and he didn't want what he'd suffered spread around. "Never mind," said Mandy, solving his difficulty. "It was very rude of me to ask a question like that." Unfortunately, the damage was done. Several of the older students had heard her question, and were now staring at Harry in surprise or concern.

Neville quickly changed the subject to say how surprised he was to have received an acceptance letter to Mryddin Academy, and that his family had been afraid that he was a Squib. Harry, much relieved, listened to Neville tell about how his Great-Uncle Algie had tried to force magic out of him, and that he'd bought Neville his toad as a reward for getting into Mryddin Academy.

After an hour and a half, the food on the plates disappeared and was replaced with dessert. Harry filled his plate again with treacle tart and ice cream and began talking with Ron and Emily about the school.

Finally dessert was over and Professor McIntyre stood up again. "Now that we have eaten, it is time for the announcements. First of all, there is a forest on the grounds. It is in your best interest not to go there unless you are accompanied by a staff member, because the centaurs residing there are very proud and touchy beings and might not appreciate being disturbed. You do not wish to scare off the unicorns, either, and in a sectioned off area, a very large and dangerous spider, known as an acromantula, makes his home with his mate and offspring.

"Second, Quidditch tryouts will begin the second week of school. Please contact the captain of your house team if you wish to join. Third, unnecessary magic is not allowed in the corridors, and there is a list of banned items posted in the office of Mrs. Sternberg, the school caretaker. That is all. You may leave now."

The Diamond House fifth year prefects, Isadora Rought and Lars Bjornsen, beckoned the first years to them and led them out the Dining Hall. They followed Isadora and Lars up staircases and down corridors, being warned that the stairways could move at times. Finally they reached a portrait of a brown-haired witch dressed in pink and a blond wizard dressed in dark blue robes. "Password?" asked the wizard.

"Diamond in the rough," replied Isadora.

"Correct," said the witch. The portrait swing open, revealing an entrance hole.

After everyone had climbed in, Lars said, with the faintest trace of an accent, "This is the Diamond House wing. We are now in the common room. On each side are doors that lead to private study rooms. The staircase on the right leads to the boys' dormatories, and the one on the left leads to the girls."

Harry was about to head for the boy's staircase when Mandy grabbed his arm. "Excuse me, but Padma and I would like to talk to you, Harry."

Ron quickly said, "I'm coming with him."

"Me too," said Emily.

Mandy shrugged. "All right, then."

They headed for one of the study rooms and was about to go in when Neville and Justin joined them. "We want to talk with Harry," Justin explained. "About the question you asked Harry, Mandy."

The six of them went inside and shut the door. Sitting down at the large table, Padma said, "Mandy and I aren't idiots, Harry. We can read between the lines of what Ron said." Glancing pointedly at Mandy, she added, "Though unlike Mandy, I have the sense not to ask in front of the rest of the house if you were treated badly by your relatives. You wouldn't want that be spread out, would you, Harry?"

Harry shook his head and sighed. "All right. I was abused my aunt and uncle. Professor McIntyre figured something was wrong when she saw that the address for my acceptance letter included 'Cupboard under the stairs'. She went to check personally and discovered I was abused. Charges for child abuse has been filed against the Dursleys, and I'm living here with Professor Lupin and the Weasleys as my guardians for the moment."

Neville tumbled out of his chair in shock. He picked himself up and stared at Harry. Finally he said, "That's awful, Harry. How could you have been treated like that by your relatives? Great-Uncle Algie might have dropped me out of a window and pushed me off the Blackpool pier, but he meant well and just wanted to see if I had magic. Your relatives had no excuse."

Padma, looking outraged, said, "Well, I'm glad your relatives are going to suffer for their consequences, Harry. And you can be certain that I'm not going to spread it around the school."

"I won't either," said Mandy. "And I'm sorry about asking during dinner, Harry. Sometimes I can just blurt things out without really thinking if it's right to say them."

Neville and Justin promised not to say anything about it either, and Ron and Emily explained how they knew already. The seven of them decided to become friends, and then they left to go to their respective rooms.

Harry, Ron, Justin, and Neville entered the room labeled "First Years." Inside were four four-poster beds, with white velvet hangings with silver and gold embroidery. Between the beds were four dressers, and under the windows were two window seats. There was also a round table with four chairs, four laundry baskets, four tall wardrobes, and a bookcase.

Their trunks were at the foot of the beds. The four boys brushed their teeth, changed into their pajamas, and spent a couple of hours talking and getting to know each other better. They finally grew tired and fell asleep.

Author's Note: Who do you think Harry should end up with? I'm leaning toward Padma or Emily, but I'll go with the one with the most votes. The choices are:

Emily Spencer

Padma Patil

Mandy Brocklehurst

Mariko Yamatato-Patel

Abby Sternberg

Luna Lovegood

Hermione isn't one of the choices because she'll end up with Ron like in the books, and I'm not going to follow canon and have Harry be with Ginny. Hermione will still become friends with Harry, though they're not in the same house. Abby and Mari are friends with Harry, and through them, he'll become friends with Hermione.


	5. Classes

The next morning, the four house tables were gone, replaced with smaller tables that sat up to a dozen people. Harry and the rest of his Diamond House friends sat at a table with Hermione, Abby, Mari, Terry, and Adelheid Baum. The German girl quietly told the others that she preferred to be called Heidi, and then was silent for the rest of breakfast, except to answer briefly to questions the others asked her, and once to say "Gesuinheit" when Ron sneezed.

Abby explained in a whisper, "Heidi's quiet, and I think she's shy. If Mari hadn't invited her to sit with us, she'd have sat alone."

Harry looked at Heidi, wondering what was the matter. He had sat alone at lunch in primary school, but that was because of Dudley and his gang. Finally he decided that she was still adjusting to being in a different country.

After breakfast was classes and Harry's first one was Transfiguration, with Sapphire House. Professor McGonagall gave the class a stern talking to. "Anyone who misbehaves will leave my class and not return. You have all been warned." Shen then transfigured her desk into a pig and back again. Everyone was impressed, but grew disappointed when they found out they wouldn't be learning that until much later. After, she had everyone take complicated notes, then handed each person a match and instructed them to turn it into a needle.

Heidi did it in the first try, to everyone's surprise. Professor McGonagall looked impressed and awarded Sapphire House ten points. Then she handed Heidi a Knut and asked her to turn it into a button. Heidi was able to transfigure the Knut as well and Professor McGonagall was even more impressed. Questioning proved that Heidi had already learned some magic from her mother. Professor McGonagall looked thoughtful after that, and finally said that she would speak with the Headmistress and have Heidi be placed in the second year class.

By the time class ended, only Emily, Hermione, Mari, Padma, and Terry had managed to successfuly transfigure their matchsticks into needles. Diamond House was awarded ten points, and Sapphire House another fifteen. Harry looked dismally at his match, which had turned silvery and a bit pointy at one end, but was not the thickness of a needle, nor did it have an eye. It was obvious that he hdn't inherited his father's talent at Transfiguration, for according to Professor Lupin, James had transfigured his match into a needle within ten tries.

The next class was Charms with Emerald House, and Harry found that he didn't seem to have inherited his mother's talent at Charms. Professor O'Leary was wearing midnight blue robes and her reddish-brown hair was pulled back into a knot. She wasn't as strict as McGonagall and demonstrated the Levitating Charm, then had everyone practice it on feathers. Harry tried repeatedly, but the feather refused to float up. Ron, who was his partner, got impatient and prodded the feather, but only succeeded in causing it to catch on fire. Professor O'Leary hurried over and put it out, then handed Harry and Ron a new feather, with a stern, "Watch what you're doing in the future, boys."

Emily, Mandy, and Carlos Rivera were the only ones to successfully levitate their feathers, while Neville managed to get his to float three centimetres above his desk for about two seconds a few minutes before class ended.

Lunch was next. Heidi sat at the end of the table and buried her nose in a book as she ate, so the others left her alone. Hermione talked excitedly about her Transfiguration and Herbology classes, and said she was very eager for the Defense Against Dark Arts class in the afternoon. Ron rolled his eyes and Harry tuned her out and asked Emily and Neville how they had managed to to levitate their feathers.

"I really don't know," said Neville, shrugging. "Besides, I didn't do it all that well."

"But you still were able to get it off the desk for at least a second," pointed out Harry. "I couldn't get my feather to move at all, except for it to flop around the table once."

"You did swish and flick, didn't you, Harry?" asked Emily. "And you did say the spell properly, right?"

"Yes," responded Harry. "But it didn't do me any good. I don't seem to have inherited my mother's ability at Charms. I'm not even as good as my father. The only ability I know I've inherited is flying, and that's from my dad."

"You can't always inherit your parents' abilities," said Emily. "Children can turn out to be completely different from their parents. Look at me. I'm a witch, but my parents are Muggles. My father was quite stern even when he wasn't drinking, but I'm not like that. And Mum has a temper, maybe because of her red hair, but I rarely get angry."

"Your hair is red, Emily," pointed out Neville.

"Actually, I'm a strawberry blonde," corrected Emily. "It's not really red. Anyway, I'm sure you'll find a subject you're best in, Harry. You can't expect to do very well in every class. Otherwise you might have been sorted into Sapphire House. We can't all be like Hermione or Heidi."

After lunch was Herbology with Ruby House, held in Greenhouse One. Professor Yamatato-Patel was dressed in dark green robes that was rather shabby and covered with earth. Her raven-black hair was done in a tidy bun and a patched hat rested on top. She said cheerfully, "Good afternoon, class. Please just leave off my last name, or call me 'Professor Y' in class, because it's too long and will take up time." Then she went over the class requirements and after discussed the properties and uses of a few plants. Finally she had everyone pot some herbs, then dismissed class.

Neville was asked to stay behind, and half an hour later, he said excitedly to his friends, "Guess what? Professor Y noticed that I had some talent for Herbology and she asked me to join a special group that helps her in the greenhouses! Only the ones that are good in Herbology and are really interested in it end up joining. I said yes and tomorrow afternoon I get to go!"

The others congratulated him, then they settled in one of the study rooms off the library and worked on their Charms homework, which was to practice the Levitation Charm, and their Transfiguration homework, which was to read the first chapter in their text and summarize it.

The next day, the first class was Defense Against Dark Arts with Ruby House. Professor Lupin was an excellent teacher. He introduced the class to boggarts, and explained how to defend against them. Then he had the class line up and take turns fighting the boggart, which was locked in a filing cabinet. Harry was nervous as he considered what his worst fear was. If he was still at the Dursleys, then it was likely his uncle, with a belt in his hand. But now that Harry was taken away from them, it would probably be something else. He paled as he realized that it was likely being sent back to stay at the Durlseys. The boggart would likely take the form of Dumbledore or someone else telling him that he could no longer stay at Myrddin School and had to go back to his relatives.

Harry shuddered and wondered if there were some way out of this. He really did not want the rest of the class to see what his worst fear was, especially as it wasn't likely to be a severed hand like Dean's or a spider like Ron's. Emily, who was in front of Harry, now took her turn. She determinedly strode to the hairy beast of some sort, Justin's worst fear, which suddenly turned into a red-haired woman with blue eyes exactly like Emily's. Harry looked puzzled, then gasped as the woman suddenly collapsed and a coffin appeared around her. He realized that Emily's worst fear was her mother dying.

Emily raised her wand and was about to say "Riddikulus!" when there was a crack and the person in the coffin changed into Padma. Harry blinked in surprise, and looked at Emily, whose face was now pale. "R-riddikulus!" she stammered. All that happened was there was another crack and Padma changed into Harry. Emily tried again, but this time boggart-Harry in the coffin changed into Ron, then Mandy. Emily tried a third time, but boggart-Mandy changed into Neville. Emily burst into tears and Professor Lupin stepped in. The boggart, which had now changed into Justin in a coffin, transformed into a silvery orb hanging in mid-air.

"Riddikulus!" said Professor Lupin firmly. The orb turned into a cockroach and he forced it back into the filing cabinet. Then he turned to the class and said, "Class is dismissed. Kindly read the chapter on boggarts and summarise it for homework." He led Emily to a seat and conjured a cup of tea.

The Ruby House students filed out, but the Diamond House students stayed back, looking concerned. "What happened, Emily?" asked Justin. "Why couldn't you deal with the boggart?"

The other two girls in Diamond House, Marie de Lavelle and Amy Wang, patted Emily on the shoulder. Marie said gently in accented English, "It is all right, Emily. Zis is not-" She hesitated, apparently searching for the words in English. Then she continued, "I mean, not everyone can defeat a boggart zeir first time."

"What was the boggart exactly, anyway?" asked Amy. "I couldn't see clearly."

Emily wiped her eyes and answered, "It was my mother and friends dying."

"But we've only been your friends for two days!" protested Mandy. "That wouldn't be long enough for us to be part of your worst fear!"

Emily shrugged. "That apparently doesn't matter. And I suppose if Professor Lupin hadn't stepped in, the boggart would have turned into Hermione, Marie, and the rest."

"Since your housemates have stepped in to comfort you, Miss Spencer, then it won't be necessary for me to," interrupted Professor Lupin. "But please don't spend too much time dwelling on your boggart. In time you will be able to successfully counter it." With that, he moved to his desk.

"Em, it's all right," said Ron. "Besides, everyone will have to die sometime. We're all dying from the time we're born."

Padma gave Ron a reproving look and Harry hissed, "Don't you have tact at all, Ron?" Then he turned to Emily and said, "You-"

"Enough," interrupted Emily. "Ron, I know everyone has to die sometime. I'm not afraid of natural death. What I am afraid of is my mother and friends being killed. When I saw the people in the coffins, it was because they had been killed." She glanced at Harry. "Well, one good thing happened as a result. Harry didn't have to face the boggart. I don't think he'd want the class to see his worst fear."

Marie and Amy looked confused, but didn't ask any questions. Once assured that Emily had recovered, they headed for History of Magic with Sapphire House. The teacher was Eoin McIntyre, the Headmistress' husband. He had brown hair, grey eyes, and wore robes of blue and green tartan. He told the class to simply call him 'Mr. McIntyre' so there wouldn't be any confusion with his wife, then began the lecture. As he spoke, he had a pronounced Scottish accent, which made it rather difficult for Marie, Heidi, and the two other international students to understand him.

Next was lunch, then Potions with Emerald House, which was held in the school dungeons. Mandy took one look at Professor Snape, then asked in a whisper, "Is he a vampire?"

"Of course not!" exclaimed Ron. "But Snape is one of the scarier teachers. He's strict like McGonagall and tends to favor his house, Emerald. But he's a good teacher, or Professor McIntyre wouldn't have hired him, and you can learn a lot from him."

"Silence!" barked Professor Snape when it was time to start class. He took attendance, then said, "You are here to learn the subtle science, and exact art of potion-making. As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses... I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death - if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach." More silence followed this little speech.

He then pointed his wand at the chalkboard and writing appeared. "Today we will be making a simple headache potion. The ingredients and directions are on the board. But first, can anyone tell me what uses willow bark and valerian have?"

Cornelia van Tramp, Blaise Zabini, Emily, and Padma raised their hands. Snape glanced at Emily and Padma, then nodded at Cornelia. "Miss van Tramp, you may answer."

"Willow bark and valerian are very good for helping with headaches," replied Cornelia in accented English. "Some people cook, no, make tea from willow bark." She continued speaking.

When she was done, everyone had to copy what she said down and Snape said approvingly, "Five points for Emerald House." Snape asked a few more questions connected with the headache potion, and Diamond House was awarded five points and Emerald House another ten. Then everyone was paired up and the making of the potion began.

Harry set up his cauldron and began grinding the willow bark, while Mandy chopped the valerian leaves. He continued with the preparations and then he and Mandy added the ingredients and did what the diections on the board said.

Toward the end of class, when the potions were done, Professor Snape checked the results. He paused by Harry and Mandy's table and looked at the potion, which was the proper shade of green. "It looks correct." He raised a brow and added, "You must have inherited some of your mother's talent for potion-brewing, Mr. Potter. Miss Brocklehurst, Mr. Potter, take a point each for Diamond."

After class, Harry went to see the Headmistress for the weekly tea he had with her. He found her frowning over an article from the _Daily Prophet_. "What's the matter, Professor?"

Professor McIntyre looked up. "There still haven't been any leads to the Gringotts break-in that happened on your birthday, Harry." She stared thoughtfully at him, then continued, "Don't tell anyone, but a famous alchemist named Nicolas Flamel left an object he created in a high-security vault at Gringotts. However, lately he had concerns that Gringotts might not be safe enough, so he decided to move it. Hogwarts and Myrddin School are the two places that are safer than Gringotts. As Dumbledore had done some work in alchemy with Flamel, it was decided that the object be kept at Hogwarts rather than here. Fortunately, the object was removed just before the break-in."

"What was the object?" asked Harry curiously.

"Now that I can't tell you," said Professor McIntyre sternly. "It's not for students to know. Now, the date of the Dursleys trial is on the 18th. I will escort you there to testify."

Harry drank his tea and listened closely as the Headmistress gave the exact details. Then he left and spent the rest of the afternoon with his friends.


	6. The Trial

Author's note: I made a minor mistake in the last chapter. It should have been campion, not valerian leaves. Campion is used for dealing with headaches, while valerian helps someone fall asleep. Sorry about that. And Amy's last name is changed to Sun. I realized that with the last name of Wang, she would have been Sorted just before Ron. However, I hadn't mentioned that, so she is now Amy Sun.

Classes continued. Astronomy was held every Thursday evening at ten o'clock. The very first class, Professor Anthony pointed out the star that she was named after, Lyra. On Friday afternoons, all Muggleborn first years, plus those who weren't but were raised in the Muggle world, attended a class that familiarized them with the wizarding world, while those brought up in the wizarding world attended a class that gave them a basic idea of the Muggle world. In third year, a more in-depth look would be presented for those students who decided to take Muggle Studies. Professor Benjamin Carsile, Professor Anthony's husband, taught the Wizarding World class. (She kept her maiden name so there would be no confusion between them if they had the same last name.)

Hermione and Emily knew quite a bit about the wizarding world already, for they had bought books about it for background reading during the trip to school supplies. The rest didn't know as much. All Harry knew was what Ron and the others living at the school had told him, which mainly involved Quidditch, the methods of wizarding travel, the Ministry of Magic, and some of the magical beings and beasts, plus the history of Myrddin School from the book _A History of Myrddin School of Magic._

The first class, Harry listened, bored, as Professor Carsile went over the methods of wizarding travel. He only showed interest when Professor Carsile then went over Quidditch and the similar sport of Quodpot, which was played in the United States.

The second week of school, flying classes were held, with Mrs. Sternberg teaching. Harry had already done some flying over the summer when Ron and Mari had introduced it to him. The first time he flew, he seemed to know what to do, and had flown excellently. Ron had whooped admiringly. Professor Lupin had later told Harry that James Potter had also been a brilliant flyer, and had been chaser on the Gryffindor team at Hogwarts. Harry had been pleased to hear that.

After the lesson, which involved Neville almost falling off his broom, but Harry managing to fly over and catch him by the robes just in time, Mrs. Sternberg took Harry aside. "You have talent, Harry. I suggest you try out for the Diamond House Quidditch team. There is a seeker and chaser spot open, the old ones having graduated, and a couple of reserve spots. First years don't normally make the teams other than as reserves, but you have talent and should try."

During dinner, Harry found Isabel Mendoza, the captain of the Diamond Quidditch team, and asked her when tryouts were. The fifth year chaser responded, "Tomorrow evening, Harry."

The next evening, Harry took out the Nimbus Two Thousand Professor Lupin and Mr. Weasley had given him for his birthday and set out for the Quidditch pitch. Ron, with his Cleansweep Seven, Emily with a borrowed school broom, and Amy Sun, with a Comet Two Sixty, went with him, for they intended to try out for the Diamond team as well.

Isabel looked over the candidates, then said, "Okay, guys, split up into whatever positions you're trying out for. If you can't decide, or don't know what position you're best suited for, you're part of a another group."

Harry, having no idea what position he was best for, except that he might have Seeker or Chaser skills, joined Emily and a second year boy. After a few minutes, Isabel blew a whistle and began the chaser tryouts. Amy was third to tryout and flew quite well, but she dropped the Quaffle twice and fumbled once when passing. She seemed quite expert at dodging bludgers, though, and Isabel looked somewhat impressed by the end.

Harry was the fifth person to try. Isabel looked very impressed with his flying skills, but shook her head over his Chaser skills. While he could throw the Quaffle into the hoop, he dropped it three times, and wasn't very good at passing. Emily was after him, and while she was very good at scoring goals and passing, she wasn't as good a flyer.

After the last person had tried out for chaser, Isabel announced, "Yukimi Kazura, you are the new Chaser. Jennifer Walsh, you are returning as Chaser. And Emily Spencer, you will join Claire Benson as reserve Chaser." Harry exchanged happy grins with Emily, then saw Amy look disappointed.

Next was the Keeper tryouts. Ron took part, and he managed to block four out of the six attempts at the goalposts. Harry declined to try. When they ended, fourth year Wilhem Gluck was welcomed back as Keeper and Jeremy Kennedy as the reserve. Ron looked very disappointed, but cheered up as Isabel told him and the others that had tried out that Jeremy would be graduating at the end of the year and they would have another chance next year.

Third was the Beater tryouts. Harry decided not to try out for those, either, for his size didn't exactly make him beater material, though he thought he could hit the Bludgers. When they ended, Isabel announced, "Ryan Finch and Astrid Larsen return as Beaters. The new reserve is Gerald Morris."

Last was the Seeker tryouts. A modified version of the Snitch was let loose (it would return to the box if not caught within half an hour) and all those trying out for Seeker went after it a minute later. Harry was the first to spot the Snitch, about three minutes later, and went speeding after it. The five others soon saw what he was doing and went after him. Harry had the faster broom, however, and after a dive of about forty feet, he caught it.

Isabel looked very impressed as Harry landed. "You're excellent!" she exclaimed. "As good as Charlie Weasley when he was on the Sapphire team and slightly better than Margie Croft, our old Seeker. You are definitely on the team as seeker, Harry," She then turned to a third year boy, looking apologetic. "I'm sorry, Nate. I know you were expecting that you'd be made full Seeker when Margie graduated. However, Harry is better than you. So I'm afraid you'll remain as reserve Seeker."

Nate shrugged. "That's all right. At least I'm still on the team. And it would be unfair to make Harry the reserve and me full Seeker when he's better than me."

Isabel dismissed everyone after informing that practices would be held at least twice a week and the schedule would be posted in the common room.

On the 18th, Harry was excused from class because of the Dursleys trial. Professor McIntyre, Professor Lupin, and Mrs. Weasley went with him. The librarians, Mr. Lovegood and Mrs. Chueng, took over Professor Lupin's Defense classes. Just before they left, Professor McIntyre spoke with a blonde woman of about forty, with begemmed glasses, red nail polish on her nails, and red robes. Harry was too nervous about the trial to ask who she was, but did notice that the woman nodded and looked delighted after the conversation.

The social worker, Ms. Hargreaves, met them outside the courthouse. She greeted Harry, then assured him that everything would be all right. Despite the fact that the Dursleys had hired a very good lawyer, all the evidence against them would convince the judge that they were unfit guardians and he would find them guilty. Harry gulped, but nodded nervously and tried to act as if he was sure everything would turn out all right.

Inside the courtroom, the charges against the Dursleys were listed. Then the lawyer for the prosecutor's side, Ms. Jameson, called Professor McIntyre to the stand. Professor McIntyre explained that when she had gone to inform Harry that he had been accepted to her school, she had found him living in a cupboard. After taking him away to purchase his school supplies, she had questioned him and found out that he had been abused.

The defense lawyer then cross-examined her, but in the end, it resulted in not helping the Dursleys' case at all. The judge frowned at the Dursleys.

Ms. Hargreaves then was called. She was in the middle of telling everything Harry had told her when the doors opened and Albus Dumbledore strode in, not looking very happy. Mrs. Weasley looked angry, while Professor Lupin growled under his breath. Professor McIntyre frowned, then glanced at the wooden bar in front of her. Harry followed her gaze and saw a beetle on the bar. He was about to brush it away when Professor McIntyre grabbed his hand and shook her head slightly.

The judge demanded angrily, "What is the meaning of this? Why are you here, sir? And who are you?"

"I'm Albus Dumbledore," said Dumbledore pleasantly. "I am the headmaster of the school Harry Potter's parents attended, Your Honor. I'm, ah, a witness for the case. On the defense side."

"You're late, then," said the judge brusquely. "Please sit down. Continue, Ms. Hargreaves."

Ms. Hargreaves continued her testimony, then was cross-examined. Dumbledore did not look happy at the conclusion and when she took her seat, Harry was startled to find her looking at him strangely. "Who are you?" she demanded. "What am I doing here in this courtroom?"

"You Oblivated her, Dumbledore!" exclaimed Professor Lupin, jumping to his feet. "Now she's forgotten why she's here and what Harry had to go through!"

The judge and lawyers looked puzzled, while the Dursleys looked a bit happy. Petunia, in particular, had realized that Dumbledore was helping them. Mrs. Weasley quickly Confunded the lawyers and judge so that they forgot what Professor Lupin had said and the case continued.

Harry gave his testimony next. Then he was cross-examined. Mr. Pearson, the defense lawyer, looked slightly unsteady as he asked, "So you claim your relatives abused you, Mr. Potter. However, I doubt that's the case. Why did your relatives take you in?"

"My parents are dead, Mr. Pearson," answered Harry. "Professor Dumbledore asked them to do so, as they're my only remaining relatives, and they did."

"Well, they didn't have to," said Mr. Pearson. "They could have sent you to an orphanage. But out of the kindness of their hearts, they took you in and protected you. Now you have the gall to claim they abused you."

Harry looked frightened, but bravely said, "Well, they did! They never gave me Christmas presents, saying that Father Christmas hadn't sent me any because I was a bad boy. My cousin Dudley had two bedrooms while I got stuck with the cupboard under the stairs. I was beaten every time my aunt and uncle thought I had angered them or had done something wrong, and was made into their personal house - I mean slave. Dudley and his gang of friends bullied me. My parents' will stated that I wasn't to be left with the Dursleys, but Professor Dumbledore ignored it and left me with them anyway. He even went so far as to pay them two hundred pounds a month for my upkeep from the trust fund my parents had left to me until I found out in August and had it stopped."

Mr. Pearson opened his mouth again, then shut it. It looked as if he couldn't come up with any questions to counter what Harry just said. The defense then presented their case. The Dursleys tried to claim that they had been wonderful guardians and only punished Harry when he misbehaved. They added that the most they had ever done was spank him a few times, send him to bed without supper, or lock him the cupboard under the stairs for an hour or two as punishment.

The judge did not look convinced. When it came time to give the verdict, he began, "I am disgusted with this. I find the Dursleys-" Then he paused and said, "I find the Dursleys not guilty of child abuse. In fact, I order that Harry James Potter return to live with them, when he is not attending the school his parents attended."

Professor McIntyre rounded on Dumbledore, while Mrs. Weasley protested, "But Harry doesn't want to attend any school other than the one he's attending now!"

Harry turned pale, but pleaded, "Your Honor, you can't send me back to the Dursleys! My parents' will-"

"They are your only remaining relatives and very good guardians, so you will return to them," interrupted the judge firmly. "The case is closed."

Professor McIntyre began arguing furiously with Dumbledore, accusing him of putting the judge under the Imperious Curse. The beetle flew away, and the lawyers left the room as well. The Dursleys were pleased that they had won the case, but not so happy over the fact that Harry would have to return to them. Finally everyone left, but not before Professor McIntyre told Dumbledore that she would bring the case to the Wizengamot. Then she Portkeyed Harry, Professor Lupin, Mrs. Weasley, and herself back to Myrddin School.


	7. Aftermath of the Trial

Professor Lupin escorted Harry to a squahy armchair, a furious look on his face. "I can't believe that Dumbledore had the gall to put a Muggle judge under the Imperious Curse just so Harry could return to the Dursleys!" Seeing Harry's questioning look, he explained, "the Imperious Curse controls other people's minds. It is one of the three Unforgiveable Curses and the use of them on a human automatically gets you arrested and sent to Azkaban, if you're caught." He then began pacing the office, muttering, "I thought Dumbledore was so wonderful for allowing me to attend Hogwarts. But now he's turned into an evil meddler. I wish I'd attended Myrddin School instead."

Mrs. Weasley sat down in the chair next to Harry. "I am going to send Dumbledore a Howler for what he did. I'm so glad Arthur and I didn't attend Hogwarts. Lily and James Potter must be turning in their graves over what's been going on. What are you doing to do, Rhia?"

"There's nothing much I can do," replied Professor McIntyre tiredly. "Well, obviously I'll appeal the case to the Wizengamot, but Dumbledore is the Chief Warlock, so he'll try to do everything he can to influence things so that they come out in his favor. Though I suppose Minister Fudge will be on our side. Protecting the 'Boy-Who-Lived' would be good for his image, and pushing aside Dumbledore will shut those who've been saying that he's having too much influence on Fudge. However, once the wizarding world gets wind of what's been going on, Dumbledore will be very unpopular. They'll push for Harry being raised by a wizarding family, and the conservative purebloods will use it for an excuse to attack the Dursleys and other Muggles."

"I wouldn't blame anyone who attacked the Dursleys, but going after all Muggles is going too far," said Professor Lupin. "Couldn't you get Rita Skeeter from submitting the article to the _Daily Prophet_?"

"I already asked her to eavesdrop on the trial because I suspected that Dumbledore would show up and try to influence things," said Professor McIntyre, removing her spectacles and rubbing her temples. "You know what Rita is like. I can't stop her from writing an article reporting the trial and bashing Dumbledore and the Dursleys, short of threatening to reveal her as an unregistered Animagus. And right now, that article needs to printed, so Harry won't be sent back to those abusive Muggles."

"Professor McIntyre, was Rita Skeeter the woman you spoke with this morning?" asked Harry.

"Yes," she responded. "She was the beetle you saw at the trial. Like Professor McGonagall and myself, she can turn into an animal. However, she's not registered, so please don't go spreading it around, or she'll be arrested and serve a term in Azkaban. And before you ask how I know about her, I'll tell you. First, there are spells and wards protecting this school. One of them is this: if an Animagus, other than Professors McGonagall, O'Leary, Snape, my husband, or myself, steps onto school grounds in animal form, he or she will be forced back into human form, and will be Stunned. The wards will then alert the staff and someone will investigate. Rita Skeeter is a reporter who writes sensational articles and ones that put people in a bad light. She came sniffing around so she could write about Myrddin School. The wards went off when she entered as a beetle and Professor O'Leary and I investigated. We found her, and rather than turning her in, used her for our own purposes. If she doesn't write anything unflattering about the school or the people here, we won't turn her in as an unregistered Animagus, and she gets paid for her work for us."

Mrs. Weasley added, "She's an unpleasant woman, but she can be quite helpful. She does some part-time work for Mr. Lovegood, writing articles for _The Quibbler_, and sometimes writes articles printed in the _Daily Prophet_ that we ask her to write."

"Harry, if you truly do not want the Wizarding world to know about your life at the Dursleys, then I will play the blackmail card and force Rita not to submit the article on the trial," said Professor McIntyre, looking at Harry gently.

Harry debated silently. He really didn't want his situation known, but on the other hand, he didn't want to return to the Dursleys. He also felt that Dumbledore should be punished for his wrongs, and it wouldn't happen unless the article was printed. Finally he made his decision. "Professor, you can allow Rita Skeeter to have the article published. I don't mind, much."

"All right, then," said Professor McIntyre. She put her spectacles back on and continued, "Don't worry about being forced to go to Hogwarts. Once you decide to attend, you have to change your mind of your own free will before the school term starts. If you don't, then you have to finish out the school year. Once the term ends, then you can change your mind and transfer. It's in the school rules, and it binds you magically to the school. Dumbledore can't bring you to Hogwarts, because of that. And putting you under the Imperious Curse or using some other method to get you to change your mind won't work, because it has to be of your own free will."

Harry looked relieved. Mrs. Weasley then escorted him to one of the study rooms, where his friends were waiting. "How did the trial go?" asked Emily anxiously.

He explained what had happened during the trial, and told them about Rita Skeeter, warning them not to tell anyone else about her. Ron looked furiously and loudly thumped the table. "How could Dumbledore do that?"

"I think Dumbledork is a better name for him," said Mandy. "Or prehaps Dumb-Old-Dork. Why does he want you living with the Dursleys so badly, anyway, Harry? And why does he want you to attend Hogwarts?"

"Because at Hogwarts, Dumb-Old-Dork can keep an eye on Harry and manipulate him," answered Neville bluntly.

Harry nodded in agreement. "That's what I think, too. I don't know why he wants me with the Dursleys, except that maybe I'd be protected from Death Eaters there. Professor McIntyre said she thinks he might have done some spells on the Dursley home to protect me, because Aunt Petunia is my mother's sister and shares her blood, and Mum sacrificed herself for me."

"You might be protected from Death Eaters, but not from your relatives!" exclaimed Padma angrily. "They'll never be nice to you, unless someone puts them under the Imperious Curse or modify their memories!"

"What if Dumbledore asked the Dursleys to be mean to you?" asked Justin. "So that when you were rescued and taken to Hogwarts, you'd be grateful to have escaped them for ten months of the year and look kindly on Dumbledore."

The others stared at him, eyes wide with shock. "Oh no!" gasped Hermione. "It is possible."

"Well, Professor McIntyre put a kink in his plans when she went to personally give Harry his letter and find out what was going on," said Mari.

Abby grinned wryly. "That was great. However, that doesn't help Harry's situation any."

"Well, the newspaper article coming out tomorrow will be of some help," remarked Terry. "The Wizarding world's going to be furious when they find out what Dumbledore did and how Harry was treated by his relatives."

"But the downside is that some purebloods will use it as an excuse to target Muggles," pointed out Abby. "Oh well, there are downsides to most things, anyway, and as long as it will help Harry, we can deal."

"The Wizengamot won't stand for what happened," said Emily, patting Harry on the hand. "If Professor McIntyre didn't bring this to them, they'd take care of it, I'm sure. They'd investigate, and fix things for Harry's benefit. Won't they?"

"If Dumbledore doesn't blackmail them or put them under the Imperious Curse, they will," said Neville.

"Well, Dumbledore can't put all the members under the Imperious Curse," pointed out Hermione. "It just isn't possible. From what I've read, you can only put one person under it. If you try to do more, it won't work. Besides, it would be difficult telling one person do something and at the same time telling another to do something else."

Ron sighed. "Well, there's nothing we can do to help Harry at the moment." They assured Harry that everything would turn out all right and then the meeting broke up.

The next morning, at breakfast, the front page of the _Daily Prophet_ was devoted to Rita Skeeter's article. The first two-thirds reported the trial truthfully, while the rest was devoted to bashing Dumbledore and questioning what he did. Several of the students looked in Harry's direction after reading the article. A few had sympathetic looks, while the rest looked extremely shocked. The ones that didn't read the newspaper heard about the article from their classmates who did, and they turned to look at Harry as well. Minutes later, mutters broke out in the hall, all of them angry at Dumbledore and sympathetic for Harry.

Harry did his best to ignore it all and with the others simply wished Hermione a happy twelfth birthday. She thanked them all and after breakfast, they went to class. The teachers were extraordinary kind to Harry, and Professor Snape refrained from making any sarcastic comments. He even went so far as to award Diamond House thirty points for Harry's potion, earning surprised looks from the other students. The most points Professor Snape had ever given a student outside of Emerald House had been fifteen points.

After class, a small party was held for Hermione. Harry did his best to be cheerful, but inside he kept thinking about yesterday's trial and wondering what would happen to him. He picked at his slice of cake, and had little appetite for the other sweets the house-elves had sent for the party. His smile as Hermione unwrapped the book he'd given her and thanked him for it was forced, and as soon as she had unwrapped the rest of her presents, he left the party, claiming a headache.

Emily caught up with him outside the common room. "It's all right, Harry. I'm sure everything will turn out fine." She spoke further with him, soothing him. He thanked her, then went up to his dorm room to rest.


	8. The Hearing at the Wizengamot

Harry sat up with a start as Ron entered the room. "Are you feeling better, Harry?" he asked. "Oh, and Isabel wants to talk to you."

Harry went down to the common room and saw Isabel sitting in a chair next to the left fireplace. She beckoned him over and said gently, "If you don't feel up to it, Harry, you don't have to attend Quidditch practice after dinner. You're excused from it."

"Thanks, Isabel," replied Harry dully. "I don't think I'll go."

"All right, then," said Isabel kindly. "And if you need someone to talk to, but your friends aren't around, I'm available."

The next morning at breakfast, numerous owls flew inside and deposited letters in front of Harry. With the help of his friends, he opened them, and found that each one expressed their sympathy over what he went through. A letter from Mr. and Mrs. Adam Rought had more. The second paragraph read, "Our daughter, Isadora, mentions that you are in Diamond House with her. We're sure that once the Ministry settles things, you will need a guardian. If you like, we would be happy to adopt you. Isadora has no objections to having you for a brother, and our son Lionel doesn't mind either. He says it would be cool having you for an older brother. You would have a happy life with us."

Harry raised a brow and glanced over at the table where Isadora was sitting. She was talking with her friends, so he put down the letter and opened another. That one had an offer of adoption as well. When all the letters had been opened, it was found that at least ten of them had offers to adopt him. There was even one from Emily's mother. It appeared that Emily had written to her mother about the trial, and Ms. Spencer had been so shocked by the events that she decided to offer to adopt Harry then and there.

Harry privately preferred having the Weasleys or another teacher adopt him, (except Professor Lupin, who couldn't) but he felt if he had to choose among the other offers, he would pick Ms. Spencer. He had only met her during the trip to Diagon Alley and hadn't seen her again, but she had seemed nice, and he wouldn't mind having Emily for a sister. The only problem was that Ms. Spencer was Muggle, and the Ministry wouldn't be too happy with that.

Toward the end of breakfast, Rita Skeeter appeared in the Dining Hall, a bottle cork in her hand and a triumphant look on her face. She had a whispered conversation with Professor McIntyre, who then stood up and announced, "Ms. Skeeter has kindly spied upon the Hogwarts Great Hall for us, and she reported some very interesting news. During breakfast, Professor Dumbledore received numerous Howlers. Each one told him off for his actions, and it appears that some of the Howlers were from various people in the Ministry. Minister Cornelius Fudge didn't send one, but he gave orders for one his underlings to do so, it seems."

There were cheers and applause as Professor McIntyre sat down.

After classes, Harry was called into the staff room. The entire staff, except Mrs. O'Malley, was there. Harry was quite surprised to see his Head of House in a dark blue sari. The few times he had seen her outside of classes or the Dining Hall, she had been wearing a kimono. Apparently she was giving consideration to her husband's heritage. "Potter," said Snape brusquely, "the meeting with the Wizengamot is on Tuesday of next week. Amelia Bones, head of Magical Law Enforcement sent the letter this morning."

"Several members of the Wizengamot have graduated from Mryddin Academy, and they are firmly on your side, Harry," said Professor Lovegood. "They are well aware of what Dumbledore might do to influence things, and have-" She suddenly broke off and stared into space. Several seconds later, in an airy, dreamy voice like the one her daughter Luna often spoke in, she said, "The one who survived the Dark Lord shall never see his nearest blood relatives again, unless he so wishes. He is free from their torment, and will have a pleasant life until the Dark Lord returns. Then he shall suffer, but eventually return to the pleasant life."

Everyone stared at her, except Professor McIntyre, who had conjured parchment and quill and was busy writing what Professor Lovegood said. The Divination teacher blinked when she was done speaking, and in her natural tone, asked, "I just made another prediction, didn't I?"

The rest of the staff nodded and she read her prediction. "I see. Well, there is nothing for you to worry about, Harry. It appears that the Wizengamot will remove you from the Dursleys and you'll never have to see them again."

"My prayers have been answered," said Reverend O'Malley. Then glancing at the other religious staff, amended, "Or rather, our prayers have been answered. Since we have all been praying to whatever deity or deities we believe in."

Mr. Patil nodded. "I did ask Ganesh to remove obstacles that would prevent Harry from leaving his relatives."

Professor Farohoud sighed. "Well, that's settled. Selena's prophecies and predictions have all come true before, except for one, but that involves something due to happen next year, so this prediction will be certain to come true as well."

Professor Lupin patted Harry gently on the arm. "So there's no need to worry, Harry. Just answer the Wizengamot's questions and you'll be all right." Harry was excused and he left the room.

On Friday, in the _Daily Prophet,_ the front page article, written by Rita Skeeter, reported that Dumbledore had been removed from his position as Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot. He had also been voted out of the Chairmanship of the International Confederation of Wizards, and many people were clamoring for his removal from the Chocolate Frog cards and taking away his Order of Merlin. For once, Light and Dark wizards and witches alike were joined together in their disapproval of Dumbledore's actions. Due to his defeat of the Dark wizard Grindelwald and his help in the previous war, he wasn't going to be arrested, but he was very unpopular.

Tuesday morning, Harry nervously got ready for the meeting with the Wizengamot. He donned the bottle green dress robes he'd gotten for his birthday and tried to flatten his hair, with no success. Finally Professors Yamatato-Patel and McIntyre came for him and they Flooed to the Ministry. Amelia Bones, a broad, square-jawed witch with very short grey hair and wearing a monocle met them. She smiled pleasantly at Harry, which made her look less forbidding, and told him that she was the aunt of Susan Bones, one of his classmates. Then she greeted Professor McIntyre, whom she'd apparently gone to school with, and nodded at the other accompanying teachers.

They were led inside the courtroom, where the rest of the Wizengamot were waiting. Cornelius Fudge called the session into order and said, "Custody hearing of one Harry James Potter, looking into his removal from the custody of his relatives, who allegedly abused him. Interrogators: Cornelius Oswald Fudge, Minister for Magic; Amelia Susan Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister. Court Scribe, Blair Edmund North."

He looked kindly at Harry and said, "Mr. Potter, could you please tell us what you went through with the Dursleys?"

Harry was very nervous, but he bravely began speaking. There were mutters and whispers a minute into his tale, and the members looked horrified. The only person that didn't seem to show any shock at all was the witch on Fudge's right, who was sitting so far back on the bench that her face was in shadow. Harry guessed that she must be Dolores Umbridge, however.

Harry had just finished speaking and Professor McIntyre was about to describe how she had found him when the doors opened and Dumbledore walked in. The others in the room did not seem happy to see him, at the very least, and Fudge looked very uncomfortable. "Er, you found out about the date and time of the hearing, Dumbledore?"

Dumbledore nodded pleasantly and conjured a squashy armchair to sit on. "I'm here to defend the Dursleys and see that Harry returns to his loving home."

Several Wizengamot members snorted. Madam Bones said sternly, "You may stay, but you will not say a single word out of turn, Professor Dumbledore. Professor McIntyre, please continue."

When Professor McIntyre was done speaking, Mrs. Figg testified. Harry was surprised, to say the least, to discover that his baby-sitter was a Squib, and had been asked by Dumbledore to live near the Dursleys in order to keep an eye on him. Mrs. Figg reported that she had suspected that Harry was being abused, due to his bruises, and had told Dumbledore, who always brushed her off and made vague promises to look into it. Dumbledore's eyes flashed with anger upon hearing Mrs. Figg's testimony, and might have tried to Oblivate her if there hadn't been so many people keeping an eye on him.

Finally Professor Dumbledore spoke in defense of the Dursleys, but nobody paid much attention to him. He glared angrily at certain people, who looked slightly scared. When he was done, Fudge called it to a vote. "All in favor of removing Harry James Potter from his relatives' custody?" Most of the Wizengamot, including Fudge, raised their hand. "All opposed?" No hands were raised, though Harry noticed that the witch on Fudge's right and the few that had looked scared hadn't raised their hands at all. Fudge glanced around and asked, "Undecided?" and they raised their hands.

"Very well, Mr. Potter is removed from his relatives' custody," said Fudge, looking triumphant. "Anyone who wishes to adopt Mr. Potter may submit their names in for consideration. He will then decide whom he wants to adopt him. The hearing is adjourned."

"Wait!" exclaimed Dumbledore. "Mr. Potter has to attend Hogwarts! That's what his parents would want!"

"After what you've done to me, I don't think so," snapped Harry, glaring at Dumbledore.

"Mr. Potter has chosen to attend Myrddin School, so that's where he goes," said Madam Bones. "You can't stop him, Dumbledore."

Professor McIntyre proceeded to explain to Dumbledore that a student had to change his mind of his own free will to be able to leave Myrddin School at the end of the school year and transfer to another school. Dumbledore appeared to ignore it and walked over to Harry. Before anyone could react, he had grabbed Harry's arm and stuffed a small statue into his hand. They disappeared an instant later.

Harry landed in a heap and as he scrambled to his feet, he looked around to see it was Dumbledore's office. Rather than becoming scared, he was now angry. "What do you think you're doing, Dumb-Old-Dork?"

"Now, now, name-calling is unnecessary," said Dumbledore pleasantly. "Harry, you truly do not want to continue your education at Myrddin Academy. Hogwarts is an older and better school, and your parents were alumni. Professor McIntyre will simply use you."

"Well, you were the one who placed me at the Dursleys!" snapped Harry. He glanced down and saw a beetle on his robe sleeve. It looked as if Rita Skeeter had come along with him. He looked up again at Dumbledore and said coldly, "I have no wish to attend Hogwarts, Professor. So please send me back to Myrddin School."

"I do not wish to have to resort to this," said Dumbledore sadly. He pulled out his wand and said, "_Imperio!_"

A voice in Harry's head said gently, _Change your mind. Say that you wish to transfer to Hogwarts._ Harry opened his mouth when his mind retorted, _No! Why should I? I'm happy at Myrddin School and don't want to go to Hogwarts. _He shut his mouth.

_Say it!_ snapped the voice in his mind. Harry opened his mouth and said, "I wish to transfer to-" He got no further as he suddenly felt a tugging on his legs and disappeared from the office. A second later, he landed in Professor McIntyre's office.

"What happened?" he asked as he got up and looked at the Headmistress, who looked relieved.

"A special spell designed by the Founders," responded Professor McIntyre. "If a student of this school is captured and to be held elsewhere against his or her will, the spell automatically activates and he or she is transported to the Head's office. It is similar to Appariation, but not exactly, for wards on the school prevent Appariation. It is more like the house-elves mode of transport."

Rita Skeeter appeared then, looking wickedly happy. "Dumb-Old-Dork, to borrow your name for him, Harry, is furious. The instant you disappeared, he cursed and began throwing things. I left then. Oh, Professor McIntyre, with your permission, I'd like to submit an article to the _Daily Prophet_ on what went on during the hearing and in Dumb-Old-Dork's office. The wizarding world would have a field day over his putting Harry under the Imperious Curse to try and get him to transfer to Hogwarts. Though it looked like Harry fought it."

"Good for you, Harry," said Professor McIntyre. Then her expression turned angry. "I can't believe he did that! Rita, you have my permission to write the article and you may insult Dumbledore all you want. Everything else has to be accurate, though."

Rita, looking even more delighted, left, while Harry went to find his friends and tell them what happened. They were glad that the hearing had gone in his favor, and were very mad to find out that Dumbledore had tried to kidnap him and force him to attend Hogwarts.

Author's Note: When Emily's mother divorced her husband, she reverted to her maiden name of Spencer, and Emily elected to take her mother's last name as well. That is why Harry refers to her as Ms. Spencer.


	9. Dumbledore's Trial and Halloween

The Wizarding world had a field day over the next article Rita Skeeter wrote for the Daily Prophet. More Howlers were sent to Hogwarts, which all went off during breakfast. The Hogwarts Board of Governers had an emergency meeting, where they immediately removed Dumbledore as Headmaster and placed Filius Flitwick, the Charms teacher, as acting Headmaster until they voted for a new Head. Minister Fudge sent three members from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and five Aurors to arrest Dumbledore for his use of the Imperious Curse and meddling in the affairs of Harry Potter.

Unfortunately, Dumbledore wouldn't go quietly. He made a grab for his phoenix, but Fawkes apparently was repulsed by his behavior and disappeared. Fawkes appeared later in the office of Professor McIntyre, and bonded himself to her. He also bonded with Triana, the phoenix that had bonded to one of the founders of Myrddin School and upon her death bonded to the school. It seemed likely that they might produce a chick eventually.

Dumbledore tried to find other ways to escape, but his fireplace was cut off from the Floo Network, and the wards on the Hogwarts prevented him from Apparating. He tried to create a Portkey, but Amelia Bones cast a shield of sorts around all the objects in the office so that no spells could hit them. Dumbledore finally cast Stunners on everyone and tried to jump out the window, but one of the Aurors, who had the wit to fake being Stunned, hit him with a Stunner instead. Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt then revived the others and they transported Dumbledore to a cell in Azkaban.

The Wizarding world cheered this news, and Ron said acidly, "About bloody time. Dumbledore's getting what he deserves."

Harry slept much easier at night, and no longer felt so scared of being sent back to the Dursleys. He suspected that his worst fear would change soon. He focused on schoolwork and Quidditch, and found himself doing better in classes, though he was nowhere as brilliant as Hermione or Emily.

In the beginning of October, Harry was attempting to transfigure a beetle into a button. However, he still didn't have much luck. By the third class, he had finally been able to transfigure a match into a needle, though it looked a bit misshapen. In subsquent classes, it had taken him a long time to finally succeed in a transfiguration, and then the object wasn't perfect. Neville struggled with transfiguration as well, but when he succeeded (usually at the same time as Harry), the objects were perfect.

At the end of class, Professor McGonagall asked him to stay behind. "Harry, it seems that you have not inherited your father's talent in Transfiguration," she said gently. "But you are the worst pupil in my class. Even Neville is better than you. That is not good. Your mother was better at Charms, but even she was among the top four students in my class, the first three being your father and two of his friends. Something is the matter with you, for if you continue at this rate, you will only achieve an 'Acceptable' during your practical O.W.L. for Transfiguration and if that brings your overall score to 'Acceptable', you will not be allowed to take my N.E.W.T.-level class."

"Then what do I do, Professor?" asked Harry, biting his lip worriedly. "I don't want to only barely pass your class."

"Either you should ask Hermione or Emily to tutor you in Transfiguration, or see Professor McIntyre and have her check if something is affecting your magic," responded McGonagall. "If I were you, I would do both, to be on the safe side."

Harry scheduled a meeting with the Headmistress for Saturday. For half an hour, Professor McIntyre preformed various magical tests. When she finished, there was an angry look on her face. However, she said in a calm tone of voice, "There is nothing wrong with your magical abilities. You are not 'almost a Squib', as Mr. Longbottom seems to think of himself. Please tell him that all he lacks is confidence, for if he had little magical ability, he would not have received an invitation to Myrddin Academy. Now, in regards to your power, it has been merely been bound so that in classes which requires the use of a wand, you do poorly in. I have just unbound your magic."

"Does this mean that I will do very well in Charms and the rest now, Professor McIntyre?" asked Harry eagerly.

"I don't know about very well, but you will improve," answered the Headmistress. "It doesn't seem that you will do as well as your father in Transfiguration, but you will certainly be on par with your mother's ability. And vice versa for Charms."

The next Transfiguration class, Harry was able to produce a perfect button on his fourth try, and in Charms, he mastered the Unlocking Charm (Alohomora) on his fifth try. Tutoring sessions with Hermione and Emily helped as well.

In the middle of October was Dumbledore's trial. Harry had to appear and give evidence on being controlled with the Imperious Curse. Dumbledore spoke under the influence of Veritserum, and revealed more crimes. He had gone against the Potters' will, and had allowed Sirius Black to be sent to Azkaban without a trial when he suspected that Sirius might not have been guilty of being a Death Eater. The Wizengamot glossed over that incident, and focused on everything else Dumbledore admitted to. Among them was his saying that the Philosopher's Stone, created by Nicolas Flamel, was being held at Hogwarts for safe-keeping.

When he admitted that it was in the vault that had been the target of the Gringott's break-in, there was a cry of outrage. "You're putting innocent students in danger!" exclaimed Madam Bones. "If someone went after it in Gringotts, what's to say that they wouldn't go after Hogwarts!"

Finally, the entire Wizengamot found Dumbledore guilty, and he was sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban. There was talk of using the Dementor's Kiss, but as he had defeated Grindelwald and fought Voldemort, it was decided against. Fudge did give orders to reinvestigate the Sirius Black affair, but in the excitement of finding Dumbledore guilty and seeing him escorted to Azkaban, the orders were ignored. Fudge also forgot about the orders the next day.

The Philosopher's Stone was removed from Hogwarts, and Nicolas Flamel had it returned to its vault in Gringotts, with even more protection.

On Halloween, there was a feast. Harry had sat down when he noticed that Hermione wasn't at the table. "Where is she?" he asked.

Mari sighed. "In the bathroom, crying. Blaise Zabini teased her about being a know-it-all. Hermione rushed off and I found her there. I did my best to comfort her, but she refused to cheer up and said she's not coming to the feast. I offered to stay with her, but she said to just let her cry alone."

The others looked concerned. "I've been teased before," said Mandy. "For all those odd things I did in school. Prehaps I can make-"

"It won't do any good, Mandy," interrupted Emily. "I spoke with her just before I came here, and she says to just leave her alone. She'll cry herself out eventually and will feel better tomorrow."

Halfway through dinner, one of the ghosts glided swiftly through a wall and shouted, "Someone let a troll in!"

Everyone stared at each other in confusion, and wondered if the ghost was playing a Halloween prank, for trolls did not appear at schools.

"I'm serious!" snapped Sir John angrily, his head falling off. He grabbed it, jammed it back on his shoulders, and continued, "This isn't a prank. A troll has somehow gotten in!"

Professor McIntyre stood up. "Students, proceed directly to your common rooms. Prefects, escort them. The staff will deal with the troll."

"How did a troll get in?" asked Justin.

"Who knows?" replied Neville. "Maybe a troll was wandering by, saw the school, and entered."

"Have you forgotten about Hermione?" demanded Padma. "She's crying in the bathroom, and doesn't know about the troll."

"Then we warn her," said Abby firmly. "Come on, guys." They gave the other students the slip and rushed off toward the bathroom. They were almost there when they were hit with a very disgusting smell. It was a combination of old gym socks and the kind og public bathroom that nobody cleans.

"Ugh!" exclaimed Terry, holding his nose. "What is that stink?"

"I think the troll," answered Harry. "I read that trolls stink."

Just then, there was a scream, and they exclaimed simutaneously, "Hermione!" They ran the last few feet and burst into the bathroom to see Hermione, crouched against the wall, a terrified look on her face.The troll was standing over her, a club in his hand.

"Distract it!" shouted Harry desprately. He grabbed a fallen tap and threw it at the troll.

Emily took out her wand and shouted, "Expelliarmus!" This had no affect, other than to cause the troll to turn around. Neville and Justin threw pieces of rubble at the troll, further distracting it, while Padma and Mari darted forward and tried to get Hermione to move. However, the bushy-haired girl was petrified, and in the end Padma and Mari had to drag her away.

Terry and Abby joined Emily in trying to disarm the troll, with little success. It finally blinked, and confused by all the noise, went lumbering after Ron. Harry then did something very stupid and brave. He jumped on top of the troll. As he still had his wand in his hand, the wand went up the troll's nose, causing it to bellow in pain. Harry held on for dear life as it tried to flail him off. Abby finally disarmed the troll and she ducked as the club went flying towards her. Ron pointed his wand at the club and said the first spell that came to mind, the Levitation Charm. The club flew up into the air, and Justin shouted, "Hit the troll with it!"

Ron took the suggestion, and the club landed with a sickening crack on top of the troll's head. The troll fell to the ground. Hermione finally recovered from her fright and asked in a tiny voice, "Is it dead?"

Harry got up and bent over the troll. "I think it's just knocked out." He retrieved his wand and wiped it on the troll's trousers.

That was when the Heads of all four Houses and Professor McIntyre came in and surveyed the bathroom. "What is the meaning of this?" demanded McGonagall. "You should be in your common rooms."

"They were rescuing me, Professor," said Hermione in a quiet voice. "I was in here crying, and my friends-"

"Realized that you didn't know about the troll, came to warn you, and ended up having to fight it," finished Professor McIntyre. "That was very brave of you all. Most first years wouldn't be able to deal with a troll, even if there were eleven of you. Fifty points each will be added to Sapphire and Diamond House. Now, if you aren't hurt, I suggest you go up to your respective common rooms. The students are finishing the feast there."

"Professor, do you know how the troll got in?" asked Harry.

Professor McIntyre exchanged looks with the teachers, then nodded at Professor O'Leary. "The troll apparently was wandering by, saw the school, and came in, Mr. Potter," the Deputy Head said curtly. "No more questions, please."

The students left the bathroom in silence. When it came time to go separate ways, they looked at each other. Hermione broke the silence by saying, "Thanks for rescuing me, you guys."

"It was nothing," the others mumbled. They then went to their respective common rooms. However, from then on, their friendship grew even stronger, and it appeared as if their lives would be bound together. After all, there are some things in life that brings people closer together, and fighting a mountain troll is one of them.

(Blaise Zabini heard about what happened the next day and apologized profusely to Hermione. She accepted the apology and forgave him, but they never became more than classmates and acquaintances. Professor Snape heard about it and gave Blaise a detention for teasing her.)

Author's Note: Please don't be annoyed with me by putting in the troll scene. I needed a way to cement the friendship of the students firmly and bring them closer, and that was the only way I could really think of. I would have used another creature, but they either weren't scary enough, too dangerous (in the case of a bailisk) or there wasn't any way for it to get inside the school. (like a dragon or manticore) As things stand, Hermione and Ron wouldn't end up together unless they were much closer friends. The troll really was wandering by and saw the school.


	10. Quidditch Match

The first Saturday in November was the Quidditch match between Diamond House and Ruby House. Harry was extremely nervous. For the past three days, he'd been having bad dreams over the match. The first one involved his falling sixty feet off his broom, breaking most of his bones, and being told by Madam O'Malley that he'd never fly again. The second involved his going after the Snitch, but then realizing he wasn't on a broom, so he fell to the ground and the Ruby seeker got the Snitch. The third involved his oversleeping and a very angry Isabel telling him that as the reserve had been ill, Neville had to be used instead and that Harry was off the team.

On the morning of the match, Harry had little appetite and could only pick at his food during breakfast. Ron said, "You need your strength, Harry. You know seekers are the ones that get clobbered by the other team."

This didn't make Harry feel any better and he watched as Ron poured a great deal of honey into his oatmeal and dug in. Padma gave Ron a disapproving look, then said gently, "Harry, you really should eat. Playing a match on an empty stomach isn't good for you."

"Who are you, my mother?" asked Harry, managing a smile to show that he was joking. Padma just shook her head in mild disgust.

Isabel then came over. "Emily, you're playing in the match today. Jen's allergic to coconut, and she didn't know the cake she had yesterday had some, so she's not feeling well and can't play. And Claire landed herself in detention for a prank she played, so that's why it's you."

Emily dropped her spoon and blinked. "Really? I'm playing in the match today? Oh, I won't let you down, Isabel!"

"You'd better," said Isabel sternly. She smiled and added, "You're quite good. The practices have improved your flying skills immensely, so I'm sure you'll be an asset in today's match, Emily." Then she looked at Harry and said sternly, "Eat your breakfast, Potter. That's an order from your captain. I won't have you playing on an empty stomach." With that, she turned and left.

After breakfast, Ron fetched his Cleansweep Seven and lent it to Emily, who wasn't able to buy a broom yet. In the locker room, the Diamond House team changed into robes of white and yellow. Then Isabel gathered the team around her and said, "Everyone, just do your best and play to have fun and win. We have a good team, and I'm sure we'll do well. And one last thing, keep an eye out for the Weasley twins. They're really good beaters. But you can deal with them, Astrid and Ryan. Now, let's get out there and play a good match."

Harry walked out onto the pitch and saw that his friends had made a banner that said, "Go Diamond House!" Underneath the words showed a painting of him chasing the Snitch, and Emily and Hermione had done a charm that made the robes flash different colors.

Mrs. Sternberg was the referee and she had the captains shake hands. The Ruby House captain was their keeper, Oliver Wood. He was a burly fifth year who was a Quidditch fanatic, according to what Ron had heard from his twin brothers. Then the balls were released and Mrs. Sternberg blew her whistle for the teams to take off. Lee Jordan, roommate and friend to the Weasley twins, as well as a member of the Second Marauders (Fred and George had heard about the Marauders from Lupin, and when they started school, formed the Second Marauders with three other students that were pranksters as well.)

Lee Jordan was rather baised toward Ruby House, which resulted in McGonagall shouting "Jordan!" and "I'm warning you!" several times in reprimand. The first goal was scored by Emily, and Harry flew a few circles to let out his feelings of excitement. Diamond House scored three more times before Angelina Johnson of the Ruby team got a goal past Wilhem.

"And Johnson scores a goal, making the score forty-ten in Diamond's favor!" shouted Lee. "Go Angelina! Ruby-"

"Enough!" snapped McGonagall, looking slightly irate.

Ruby House scored five more times in the next ten minutes. McGonagall looked delighted, but still took the time to reprimand Lee for gloating. All of the Ruby students were cheering loudly, while the Diamond students groaned. Sapphire and Emerald were divided.

Emily then dodged a bludger and put a goal past Oliver. Ruby chaser Brenda Carson then had possession of the Quaffle, but dropped it when Ryan hit a Bludger at her. Emily caught it and passed it to Isabel, who then scored. The score was now tied at sixty-sixty. That was when Harry spotted the Snitch. He went streaking after it and two seconds later, Ruby seeker Nicole Eldan saw what was going on and flew after him. In the meantime, Ruby House scored once more, while Diamond House scored twice.

Ruby House had just scored another goal when Harry reached the Snitch and closed his hand around it. A disappointed Lee shouted, "And Harry Potter catches the Snitch, making the score three hundred and thirty to eighty. Diamond House wins!"

Diamond students burst into cheers, and so did the ones from Sapphire and Emerald that had supported them. A very delighted Isabel hugged Harry and said, "You're definitely the best seeker Diamond House ever had, Harry."

Emily hugged him also, and kissed him on the cheek. He felt his face turn about as scarlet as Ron's hair as she said, "I'm so glad that we won! You were an excellent seeker, Harry. And I guess I wasn't too bad, either."

Once the team had showered and changed, they returned to their common room, where there was a celebration party. Everyone congratulated them, and agreed that Harry had played a big part in the victory. Nobody could deny that he was a great seeker, and Neville said, "With you on the team, Harry, Diamond House will be a shoe-in for the Quidditch cup."

Finally the party ended and everyone scattered to do their own things.

Author's Note: The members of the Second Marauders are: Fred, George, Lee, and Brenda and Bianca Carson. Brenda and Bianca aren't twins, but they were born on the same day (April 2nd), could pass for twins, and are cousins. Their mothers are twins, and their fathers brothers, which explains why they look almost alike. Bianca is the reserve seeker for the Ruby team. The Second Marauders haven't shown up yet, as they haven't played any pranks that have attracted Harry's attention, but they will show up, prehaps in the next chapter, with a huge prank they played. Brenda and Bianca, like Remus Lupin, are more studious, but they do have a prankster's streak.


	11. The Christmas Party

The next day, during breakfast, several students found their hair turning pink and violet. The staff ended up with green hair, and a number of other students had orange and blue hair. By the time breakfast was over, it looked as if a rainbow had exploded on everybody's hair. Harry glanced over at the table where the Second Marauders were sitting and saw them laughing very hard.

Professor McIntyre, trying to look not a bit amused, though the way the corners of her mouth twitched said otherwise, stood up. "Who is responsible for this prank?" she demanded sternly.

A burst of colorful fireworks exploded and the words, "Courtesy of the Second Marauders," hung in the air for several seconds before fading away. The headmistress raised a brow. "So the Second Marauders are responsible. Blinky!" A house-elf appeared, and after questioning him, it was discovered that two students had gone to the kitchens and asked the house-elves to slip something in the morning's drinks to 'make it taste better'. As all house-elves had to obey students, unless it was something contrary to a staff member's orders, they had done so.

"I see," commented Professor McIntyre. "Blinky, could you tell me who the two students are?"

"One is being a girl, Professor," responded Blinky. "She is a third-year student, Blinky is thinking. The other is a boy. He is having red hair and is one of the Weezy twins."

"Ten points from Ruby House for this prank," said Professor McIntyre crisply. "Lee Jordan, Bianca and Brenda Carson, and Fred and George Weasley, I would like a word in my office. Blinky, if any student asks you to put anything in our drinks or food in the future, please ignore the order."

Professors McGonagall and O'Leary inspected the drinks, and informed everyone that whatever had been added to the drinks would wear off and their hair would turn back to normal within an hour.

At lunchtime, Harry heard that Professor McIntyre had given the Second Marauders had a detention each. Mrs. Weasley had yelled at Fred and George, then had given them a second detention.

The next Saturday was the Quidditch match between Emerald and Sapphire. The Sapphire keeper unfortunately got knocked out by a bludger ten minutes into the game, and was instantly taken to the Hospital Wing. According to the rules, if a player was injured, there couldn't be a substitute, so Sapphire had to play the rest of the game without a keeper. As a result, Emerald was able to score many times. The score was one hundred eighty to fifty, in Emerald's favor, when both seekers spotted the Snitch. They went streaking after it, and as the Sapphire seeker had a faster broom, she reached the Snitch first and her hand closed around it. The match ended, one hundred eighty to two hundred, in Sapphire's favor.

In December, snow fell, and Hagrid could be see about the grounds in a moleskin coat and beaver-fur boots. Older students taking Care of Magical Creatures did not relish the idea of being outside for their classes, despite the fact that the lessons were mostly about salamanders and they could be around a bonfire. Quidditch practices ended, giving Harry more time to concentrate on his school work.

On the second Monday of December, toward the end of Transfiguration class, Professor McGonagall made an announcement. "Every year, it is a tradition at Myrddin Academy to have a Christmas party. It is held on the Saturday afternoon before the Christmas holidays. There is also a Yule Ball in the evening, but that is for third year students and above, unless a younger student should be asked to be someone's date. All of you may attend the party, and you can take the opportunity to dress up and, er, relax. That does not mean, however, the school rules are not in affect. You are all expected to behave properly during the party, or you will suffer the consequences. Is that clear?"

Everyone nodded or said yes, and Professor McGonagall then dismissed class.

For the next two weeks, Harry was struck by how many girls there were in the school. The older girls gathered in groups, giggling and discussing the boys. The younger girls didn't do this, but most of them did talk frequently about what they were going to wear. The older boys worked up the courage to ask girls to the ball, and vice versa for some of the girls. Harry was quite relieved that he wasn't old enough to attend the ball, and wondered how he could ever find the courage to ask a girl to be his date when he was a third year. Not that he had anything against girls, but he was only eleven, and at this time, girls were merely just good friends, not possible love interests.

He dug up the bottle green dress robes he'd received for his birthday from the bottom of his trunk, and discovered that they were wrinkled. He tossed them into the laundry basket, and the next day, they were folded neatly on his bed with the rest of his clothes, freshly laundered and ironed.

Mandy, Mari, and Abby, like most of the other girls, spent mealtimes discussing what they were going to wear. Padma occasionally joined in, but Hermione and Emily didn't unless one of the other girls asked them a question. Ron remarked, "At least two of our girl friends are sensible enough to not talk about clothes and stuff in front of us," and the other boys had to agree.

Harry made a list of the Christmas presents he planned to get for his friends, and gave it and his key to his Gringotts vault to Professor Lupin, asking him to buy the presents for him.

The day of the party arrived. After lunch, Harry changed into his dress robes, unsuccessfully tried to flatten his hair, and cleaned his glasses. Then he went down to the ballroom with his dormmates, Ron in navy blue dress robes, Neville in dark silver, and Justin in a dark crimson. The ballroom had a dozen Christmas tress, excellently decorated, and evergreen boughs, tinsel, and wreaths hung on the walls. In the corners were holly and a few sprigs of mistletoe. The tables had been removed, except for three against the walls, which were covered with refreshments.

The boys gathered by the refreshment tables, and turned when Emily, Padma, and Mandy came over to them. Emily was in a very pretty pale green dress with gold trim. Her strawberry blonde hair fell about her shoulders in abundant waves and girls. Some sparkly green stuff was on her eyelids, and she had on pink lip gloss, the make-up that made your cheeks pink, and the stuff that blackened your eyelashes. (Whatever they were. Harry had no idea what the different cosmetics were called.) A silver cross on a chain hung about her neck, and a charm bracelet dangled from her wrist. Taht was her only jewelry. Harry vaguely knew that Emily was pretty, but he'd never really thought much about it. As a result, when he saw her like this, he was struck by how beautiful she looked.

Then he looked at Mandy and Padma, and noticed that they looked exceedingly lovely as well. Mandy had on a very pretty dress of rose pink, and her brown hair was done in a French braid. She had on lip gloss and sparkly pink stiff on her eyelids and her only jewelry was a locket and a gold bangle bracelet. Padma had on a blue silk sari with gold trim, and her black hair was plaited with gold down her back. A red dot was on her forehead, and gold bangles were on her wrists. Her Indian heritage was very apparent in this outfit and Neville kept staring at her.

After exchanging greetings, Mari, Hermione, and Abby came in. Abby had on burgundy dress robes, and her hair was done up in a knot. She did not have on any make-up, for her interest in her looks ran only to clothes and accessories, and occasionally nail polish. A gold Star of David on a gold chain hung about her throat as usual, and a (fake) ruby ring glittered on her right hand.

Hermione had on robes of periwinkle blue, and her normally bushy hair was now sleek and shiny and done in a French braid. She had lip gloss and eyeliner and a necklace of pearl beads.

Mari had her black hair done up in a style Harry didn't recognize at first. Then he realized that it had to be one of the ways Japanese women did up their hair. Mari wore a creamy yellow kimono with white underrobe, and a fan was tucked in the darker yellow sash, which she said was called an obi. A jade pendant and bracelet was her only jewelry, and she had on no cosmetics except red lipstick and a powder that made her face pale. If it weren't for her eyes, she'd have looked completely Japanese.

Terry came in a minute later, looking uncomfortable in a Muggle suit. "I hate this outfit," he complained. "I'm going to get some dress robes for next year's party. Hello, guys."

Music started playing, and several students began dancing. It wasn't ballroom dances, like the waltz, but more the kind of dances you'd find at a party in a Muggle secondary school. After two cups of punch and some refreshments, Harry worked up the courage to go out on the dance floor. He felt awkward, however, and made a note to ask Professor Lupin to teach him how to dance so he wouldn't make a fool of himself at future parties.

At five o'clock, the party ended, and everyone left so the ballroom could be readied for the evening's ball. At seven thirty, the Yule Ball began, and Harry watched the older students, all dressed up, leave the common room and head downstairs. He didn't envy them one bit, and wondered how he could ever work up the courage to ask someone to go with him as his date when he was old enough. In the end, he decided that he could always ask one of his female friends to go with him, just as friends, of course, and to worry about it when the time came.


	12. Harry's Best Christmas

The Christmas holidays arrived and most of the students went home. The few staying at the school, besides the children of staff, were the international students whose homes were too far away from Britain. The Diamond common room was mostly empty and Harry and Ron spent their time playing wizard's chess and Exploding Snap and toasting things like English muffins and marshmallows over the fire to eat.

Exploding Snap was very fun, and so was chess, except for the fact that Harry kept losing. Ron was an excellent chess player, had been playing from the time he was six, and could checkmate anyone, except for Professor McIntyre and some of the older students.

On Christmas Eve, Harry went to bed looking forward to next day's food, fun, and presents. When he woke up early the next morning, he saw a pile of packages at the foot of his bed. He wished Ron a 'Merry Christmas' and then began opening his presents.

First was a rough-cut wooden flute from Hagrid. Next was a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans from Ron. Then was a box of Chocolate Frogs from Hermione and a book on the Wimbourne Wasps Quidditch team from Neville. From Justin was a Gobstones set and from Terry was a wand carrier. Emily had given Harry (and the rest of her friends) a special notebook. It was spelled so that they could write to each other and communicate that way when they were apart. You just had to tap the cover with your wand and name the people you wanted the notebook to be connected to. If you wished to write to a specific person or persons, the name or name had to be written first, or the writing would appear in all the connected notebooks.

Harry set aside the notebook and thought that it would be useful in class, when he wanted to tell something to one to his friends. He made a note not to write to Hermione or Abby, though, because they would disapprove. Then he unwrapped Mandy's present, a pair of seeker gloves, and Padma's present, a book on the Hindu religion.

Abby's present was a box of assorted Muggle sweets and Mari's was a model of a Chinese Fireball. Fred and George had sent a small box of prank items, Ginny a wool hat, and Luna a book of sorts she'd written on nargles and the other creatures she believed in. The rest of the presents were from the staff and the younger children. Mrs. Weasley had knit an emerald green sweater, and the rest of staff had given Harry two Defence books, another on Quidditch, a scarf and pair of gloves, a journal, and a luxury quill pen. The presents from the youngest children consisted of a teddy bear, a stuffed hippogriff, a camera, a crayon drawing of him flying after the Snitch, and another of him riding a dragon.

Harry knew that riding a dragon was not feasible, but he smiled as he looked at the rather lopsided orange and red dragon. Then he hung up the drawings, for it would please Esther and Joseph Sternberg. The bear and hippogriff that Alina and Hamid Farohoud gave him he placed on his bed, and the camera from Devdan, Mari's brother, he set on the dresser. Then Harry got dressed, putting on Mrs. Weasley's sweater.

After a very delicious breakfast, Harry and his friends, along with Fred, George, Ginny, Luna, and Eddy had a snowball fight. Every so often, Luna threw a snowball in midair. When Mari asked why, Luna responded, "Oh, there are some Wrackspurts flying around, trying to ruin our game. I'm just driving them away."

Fred and George stifled snickers, while the others exchanged looks. A few minutes later, Eddy threw a snowball at Luna, then quickly stepped aside. She brushed off the snow, then looking at where Eddy had been standing seconds before, said in a scolding tone of voice, "That is enough! I was only throwing snowballs to drive you away! It didn't mean that you could get involved in the snowball fight. It's for humans, not Wrackspurts."

Fred and George didn't bother containing their laughter this time. Eddy was laughing, too. Harry and Ron had to cover their mouths to stifle their laughter. Abby and Mari exchanged looks again and shook their heads. Ginny was overcome by giggles, but had the sense to turn around so Luna couldn't see her.

"What is the matter?" asked Luna, looking at Fred, George, and Eddy. "What the Wrackspurt did wasn't funny! It was trying to ruin our snowball fight." This set the three boys off again, while Harry and Ron hid behind a large pine to hide their laughter.

Finally the laughter ended and the snowball fight resumed. Luna stopped throwing snowballs into air, explaining that the Wrackspurts had all left.

When they went inside for lunch, Ron noticed a sprig of mistletoe hanging over the door to the dining hall. He stepped to one side, prompting Luna to say, "Good idea. Mistletoe is often infested with nargles." Ron gave her a look, and then was about to walk in, when he noticed that the mistletoe had moved to hang over his head.

Fred and George started laughing. "It's a prank!" gasped George.

"It'll keep floating over your head until you kiss someone!" continued Fred.

"And it has to be on the lips!" finished George.

Ron glared at them, which didn't turn out all that well, as his face started to turn as red as his hair. Then he looked around and finally gave Ginny a quick peck on the lips. The mistletoe moved back to its original place and Ron dashed in the dining hall.

Harry and Abby were next to step through the doorway. They exchanged looks, then shrugged and quickly kissed each other on the lips. Harry felt his face turning scarlet, but Abby didn't look embarrassed at all, only resigned and slightly annoyed.

Mari pushed Fred and George through the doorway, and threatened to hex them unless they kissed each other. The twins did so, causing laughter from everyone else. Mari then calmly entered the room, and after glancing at the mistletoe over her head, found her father and kissed him. The twins looked disappointed.

When Ginny came in, she kissed her father as well, while Luna took Eddy's hand and kissed him once they had walked through the door. She was rather matter-of-fact about it, while Eddy turned crimson and muttered that he'd rather kiss his mother.

The staff mostly didn't have any problems with the mistletoe prank. As most of them were married, they just kissed their spouses. A few weren't married however, but Hagrid and McGonagall solved this difficulty by kissing each other. Snape looked livid about the prank, but after a few minutes, reluctantly kissed Professor O'Leary. When the mistletoe returned to its place over the doorway, he forced the twins to remove to spell on it.

Lunch was delicious. There were several large turkeys, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, fluffy muffins, peas, platters of vegetables, and squash. For dessert were flaming plum puddings, Christmas cake, bûche de Noël (a French cake in the shape of a Yule log), baklava, Dutch apple pie, oranges, and roasted nuts.

Harry stuffed himself. It was the first time that he had ever enjoyed a delicious Christmas meal. Back at the Dursleys, he had helped Aunt Petunia prepare the meal, but he hadn't been allowed to partake in it. He'd only been given two slices of bread, a few vegetables, and a glass of milk, and after, had been locked in the cupboard.

After the meal, Harry felt too full to do much of anything, He broke in the new chess set he had gotten in a cracker by losing spectacularly to Ron, and less spectacularly to Mari. Then he played some Muggle board games like checkers and Clue with his friends until supper, which was turkey sandwiches, vegetables, and leftover dessert. Harry had a sandwich, some vegetables, and a bit of pudding and cake, all that he could manage.

After dinner, Harry and his friends played Monopoly. The pieces had been transfigured to brooms, wizard's hats, black cats, bats, and crossed wands. The money, which originally was in pounds, had been changed to say Galleons. The properties, originally places in London, had also been changed to places like Flourish and Blotts and Gladrag's Wizardwear. The railroads were now the Floo Network and Nimbus, Cleansweep, and Comet broom companies, and the two most expensive properties had been changed to Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade.

The game lasted for three hours, and finally Harry won with six properties and over thirty thousand galleons. (The largest denomination was five thousand galleons.) After hot chocolate and biscuits, everyone went to bed. Harry climbed into his bed, thinking that it had been the best Christmas ever in his memory.


	13. Harry's Adoption

Author's Note: Sorry about the long time it took to update this. I lost interest in this fic for awhile and focused on the other fics I was writing, in which Harry was born a girl. Also, I had something of a writer's block. Then my sister pointed out that I hadn't decided on whom Harry would pick to be his guardians. So it is my sister than gave me the inspiration for this chapter. I will try to update more frequently, but for now, nothing interesting will happen. Harry won't have to rescue the Philosopher's Stone from Quirrell/Voldemort, after all. Things will pick up in second year, when the ward against Animagi comes into effect. I think my readers can work out what that means.

The Christmas holidays soon ended and students returned to Myrddin School. Harry returned his attention back on classes and schoolwork. It was also at this time when he found himself with a crush on Mari, for some reason. He had been struck by how beautiful she was at the Christmas party, and now he kept staring at her and felt shy around her. Every time she looked at him or complimented him, he turned red.

Mari, however, showed no signs of returning the crush, and treated Harry the way she had before, as nothing more than a very good friend. In fact, if she had a crush on anyone, it was probably on Justin, for she always made a point of helping him with homework. Also, Harry had once come across Mari and Abby whispering and giggling together, and he had caught the words, "Justin's cute" from Mari.

He finally sought out Remus for advice on what to do about the crush. "It's common for preteens to develop crushes," said Remus calmly. "Eventually the crush will die out, or it will develop to a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. As you aren't twelve yet, Harry, your crush will likely die out, unless it remains for the next couple of years and you get Mari to notice you then and start dating.

"Since Mari shows no sign of returning your crush, I advise you not to tell her, because she will then apologize and tell you she only likes you as a friend. Do your best to only see her as your friend, and perhaps it will become reality."

At the end of January, the Wizengamot notified Harry that all the families that wished to adopt him had submitted their names. A list of the families was included with the letter, and he was free to pick which family he wished to live with. If there were more than one family he felt would suit him, the Wizengamot would select one for him.

Harry skimmed through the list and noticed that the last names of several of his schoolmates were on there. He also noticed the names of most of the staff at Myrddin School. He was about to pick the Weasleys, then realized that they already had seven children and he didn't want to burden them with another. His other choice was Professor Lupin, but as a werewolf, he wasn't allowed to adopt, at least not until Professor Snape or some other Potions master perfected a potion to cure lycanthropy.

Harry went over the other teachers that had submitted their names and finally decided on Mari's parents. He then sent his decision to the Wizengamot, and a week later, the Yamatato-Patels and Harry went to the Ministry to finalize the adoption. Mari was very pleased with having Harry for a brother, and Devdan was just glad that he was going to have a brother in addition to a sister.

The day of the adoption hearing, Devdan chattered excitedly about how happy he was to get a new brother, especially one that was, in his eyes, terrific and great. He had been impressed with Harry's flying skills the first time he'd seen Harry fly, and Devdan had declared that he wanted to a great Seeker like Harry when he was older.

The Ministry officials at the hearing looked amused with Devdan's antics, and Amelia Bones was heard to mutter, "Well, Harry Potter isn't going to have any difficulties being part of this family if they're all as enthusiastic as Devdan."

When the papers were signed, Harry and the Yamatato-Patels left. That evening, the parents had a talk with Harry.

"Since you're now our son, please call us 'mum' and 'dad', Harry," said Professor Yamatato-Patel. "At least in private. In class, you can still call me Professor."

Harry nodded, then realized that there was a matter that he hadn't brought up before. "Will I have to convert to Hinduism, Professor, I mean Mum?"

"Of course not!" exclaimed Professor Y. "Not unless you want to, Harry."

"We won't force you to believe in reincarnation or karma or worship the Hindu dieties or believe that the cow is sacred or anything else," said Mr. Patel. "You haven't been brought up in the Hindu faith, after all. Just behave properly and be a good brother to Devdan and Mari and we'll be happy."

Now that he was part of the family, Harry got over his crush on Mari very quickly. She was now his adopted sister, after all, and if he persisted in the crush, it would border on incest, even though they weren't blood relations.

Quidditch practices resumed and Harry had less time to focus on his schoolwork. In addition, Devdan kept begging him to spend time with him. On weekends, Harry was free to do so, but he couldn't during the school week, not unless he wanted to fall behind on his work or skip Quidditch practices.

All Devdan wanted to do with his free time was go flying, play Aurors and Death Eaters, pretend to be pirates, or have mock duels with plastic swords. Since all this was stuff Harry might have played if he'd had a proper childhood, he was quite willing to spend time with Devdan and play with him. It made up for Harry's lost childhood. As time progressed, Devdan insisted on spending more time flying, and badgered Harry to give him tips on becoming a better flyer and Seeker.

Harry also enjoyed having Professor and Mr. Yamatato-Patel as his adopted parents, though it did take awhile before he was used to calling them 'mum' and 'dad'. It was harder with the professor, for he had spent five months thinking of her as his Herbology teacher and Head of House. He still went to Remus for advice, but now he also spent some time in the evenings with his adopted parents, talking to them about school and other things.

If his parents were still alive, Harry had no doubt they would be very much like the Yamatato-Patels. Wherever his parents were, he was certain they were looking down at him and pleased that he had adopted parents that were there to look after him in their place.


End file.
